The Third Rising
by redthunderingkrim
Summary: This is my unofficial continuation of Destiny's Child by: Fire. It takes place 7,000 years after the fall of the second Moon Kingdom. The Sailor Senshi must be reborn again in order to defeat a great evil to restore peace and prosperity to the universe.
1. Chapter 1

The Third Rising: The unofficial continuation of Destiny's Child

By: Yours Truly

Original Story By: Fire

This is a crossover fiction primarily including Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon, although other series will be featured in varying degrees. I have no rights to any of the characters from these series although I intend to include my own, original characters. I trust you, clever reader, can spot which is which.

This story's far superior predecessor, Destiny's Child, combined the worlds of Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon in a most unusual and interesting way. Instead of present day Tokyo, Ranma is born 400 years before the reincarnation of the Sailor Senshi. When he received his curse it not only turned him into a girl but also kept him from ageing. This meant that he outlived all his relations, including his wife, Akane. It was only after his wife's death that he left Japan and searched for knowledge around the world in order to break his curse. Although he succeeded in becoming wise in the ways of both martial arts and magic, he could not succeed in breaking his curse. Finally, he returned to Japan and met a spirit called Mistress 9 who promised him a cure to his curse. It was at this point that Ranma became embroiled with the Sailor Senshi, while simultaneously falling in love with both Hino Rei and Sailor Mars. Things reached their climax when Mistress 9 took over Ranma's female half and used it to trick Sailor Moon into handing over the Holy Grail. She then used its power to call Master Pharaoh 90 to Earth. Only with Cibi-Usa's help did Ranma regain control of his body and realize that he, in fact, was Sailor Saturn. Using his newfound powers, he destroyed Master Pharaoh 90 and was thereby reduced to an infantile state. It was not until months later that he returned to his proper age, confessed to Hino Rei, and learned that she was also Sailor Mars, who he had courted while disguised as the mysterious Saturn Knight.

The story ends there and, while it is by no means an incomplete ending, ever since I read Destiny's Child I've wanted a sequel to keep the story alive. The author, reasonably enough, does not seem inclined to make such a sequel, especially after so much time has passed since the series' completion. So, I have taken it upon my own unworthy shoulders to complete the tale. Even if I am the only one to read it.

* * *

Chapter One:

Monday, August 4th, 7059 A.C.E. (After Crystal Era)

She was running through the palace but something was wrong, the pristine, white walls and swooping arches were bathed in a sickly red light. The crystal seemed to absorb the color, and to her, it looked as if the familiar hallways had been stained the color of dried blood. She threw open a set of double doors and stepped into the courtyard. She spun among the flowers, looking around before she tilted her head back and gazed at the night sky. There, hanging in the blackness, was the source of that dreadful light. A planet burned, like the ruby eye of a demon that had come to devour all she held dear…

Usagi woke with a start. Beyond her window, the two suns rose in unusual concert. A sliver of red light had woven its way through all the tall buildings, only to land squarely on her pillow. This must have been the cause her strange dream, though their combined light was more orange than red. But really, now that she thought about it, she couldn't quite remember what the dream had been about. She could remember running, searching for something or someone. And she had been scared, that much she remembered _very_ clearly. Everything else was fading, and fading fast, but the fear remained.

Her alarm went off and even the fear was gone.

Forty-five minutes later the pink haired girl was running out of her house, a piece of toast in her mouth as she tried to yank on her backpack. With an all mighty leap, she managed to enter the pill just before it left the station.

Pills were the main mode of public transport in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. Everyone used them, rich and poor alike. True some people preferred hovercrafts, but the Pill system was much safer. Pill wasn't their real name, of course, it was a slang term given to the vehicles because of their oblong, cylindrical design that looked remarkably like a swallow capsule. They traveled in a network of tubes that not only connected each skyscraper but also wove inside all but the most ancient structures. Pilld were also infamous for the incredibly brief period they stopped to allow passengers to get on and off.

With a jolt, the Pill stopped as a brief rush of business men and one student got on, a boy wearing the same school uniform as Usagi's. The boy walked over and slumped into the seat next to her.

Usagi glanced over at the boy and actually thought he looked kind of nice. He had dark brown hair and blue eyes that seemed to twinkle with hidden emotion. She felt oddly drawn to the boy, as if pulled by a rope. She had just decided to introduce herself when he turned and gave her the most mischievous smile she had ever seen.

"You know," he said as his blue eyes sparkled at her, "girls aren't allowed to die their hair at Furinkan High."

Usagi's cheeks puffed out and she frowned, a cute but childish expression. "I don't die my hair, it's naturally this color!"

"Yeah, right," he said, rolling his eyes dramatically, "you were just born with the _exact_ color of bubblegum pink hair die. It seems a few _centuries_ out of date, if you ask me."

Usagi was angry, they had just met and he was already making fun of her hair? Why did people have to be so mean sometimes? And she had actually thought this, this… _boy_ was cute!

"Yes, I was _born_ with this hair color. If you find that so hard to believe, then I have tons of baby pictures you could look at and my hair is the exact same color in all of them!"

His smile faltered for just a moment but then came back even bigger than before, a look of smug comprehension on his face.

"Oh, so you're one of _those_." She didn't like the way he said that…

"W-what do you mean? One of _those_ what?"

"Hmm? Nothing really, just you know…" He slouched further back in his seat with a dismissive wave. "You're one of those designer babies. The ones for those super rich people. Thos people who aren't confident enough in their own genes to make a baby in the, uh, natural way."

Usagi's eyes widened and she could feel tears threatening. "That's not true!"

"It's OK, really, there are a lot like you at Furinkan High. I'm sure everyone will understand. Your parents just wanted a daughter who looked… _special_."

Usagi wasn't going to cry, she hated crybabies, but she had to do something. She stood up and raised her hand, ready to smack that cocky look from his face. The boy seemed positively delighted by the reaction he had gotten out of her, making Usagi want to put all the more force into her blow. Then, she was falling forward as the Pill lurched to a stop. Hands flailing wildly, she squealed as her face hit the dirty, sticky floor.

Laughing uproariously, the boy got up and lifted her to feet. With a light shove, she was out of the Pill and standing on the platform. The boy stepped out lightly after her and the Pill shot off around the next bend.

Still laughing the boy walked about ten paces away, while Usagi tried to wipe off whatever might have gotten on her face. A suitable distance away, he spun and shouted back at her. "My name is Katan, Katan Luedeke! And don't worry about your hair, I happen to like bubblegum!"

Usagi stuck her tongue out at his back. She was tempted to run after him to give him that smack she had been cheated out of, but saw arcane clock hung over the entrance of Furinkan High. She was dangerously close to being late; it was her first time at Furinkan and she'd need the extra time to find her classroom. So, contenting herself with making one last face at the boy, she moved off to find her classroom.

* * *

Katan remained cheerful all the way to his homeroom, picking on girls wasn't really his style, but for some reason this girl had been different. He just couldn't help himself. He had been compelled. He actually thought the girl was kind of interesting, not exactly his type but interesting. He had been drawn to her almost instantly, teasing her was simple instinct. Something deep inside him had told him to do it, if that was any excuse. Her reactions had been so amusing too, almost nostalgic in a strange way.

He had just settled in his seat and was getting reacquainted with his old classmates when the teacher walked in. Behind the man was a pink haired girl, nervous expression visible on her face.

"Alright class, quiet down." The teacher said in his mild, dry voice. "We have a new student this year. Introduce yourself, Ms. Chiba."

The girl bowed formally saying, "My name is Usagi Chiba, it's a pleasure to meet you all." What followed was a suitably polite murmur of greeting.

"Ms. Chiba," the teacher continued, "has been living on our sister planet, Titan, for the last five years. I expect you all to take this opportunity to learn more about life in the colonies."

Katan's neighbor nudged him and whispered in his ear. "I knew the colonialists were backwards, but what's with that hair!"

Katan punched the kid's arm and hissed back, "Oi! Lay off! She just got here!"

He had no idea why he had just criticized someone for the same thing he had done moments before, but it just felt wrong coming from someone else.

An evil grin spread across Katan's face as the girl ended up being seated directly in front of him. His eyes lost their focus as a pink strand of hair bounced in front of his nose. He couldn't help himself. Looking to the front of the room, he saw the teacher had his back turned as he wrote something on the chalkboard. Quicker than thought, Katan's hand shot out and caught the colorful strand, giving it the smallest of tugs. The girl gave out a satisfying squeak of surprise and spun in her chair, her cheeks puffing out with indignation.

She was about to say something to him, probably tell him off, when the teacher's dry voice cut in. "Ms. Chiba… The lesson is up here. If you don't turn around, I'm afraid you'll have to stand in the hall."

"But he…" Whatever she was going to say withered under the teacher's harsh gaze. She nodded and turned back in her seat, but not before she gave him one last glare.

A satisfied smirk on his face, Katan leaned back in his chair and picked up his exercise ball. Slowly rotating his wrist and shifting the ball in his hand, he let his mind return to the lesson.

* * *

Usagi threw herself onto her bed and buried her face in her pillow, trying her hardest not to cry. This had to have been the worst day ever! It all started with that _boy_… Katan was it? Then everyone wouldn't stop asking her about Titan. They kept insinuating things about the people who lived there. Wherever she went it felt like she had people whispering behind her back.

'Tap, Tap.'

To make it worse, no less than five teachers stopped to make it clear students were not allowed to die their hair. One was so sure her hair was died that she wouldn't let Usagi go until she had called Usagi's parents. When even that didn't convince her, she went so far as to pull up Usagi's birth certificate! By the time the woman had finally let her go, Usagi was almost thirty minutes late for her next class.

'Tap, Tap.'

When she had finally gotten to the classroom, she was too embarrassed to explain why she had been late! Her teacher stopped class for a ten whole minutes to lecture her on the importance of getting to class on time. Going so far as to suggest that, 'having lived in such a wild place as Titan, she must have forgotten how things worked in the _civilized_ world.'

'Tap, Tap.'

It was all so unfair! Titan had declared its independence almost 150 years ago, but people on Earth talked about it like it was still under Terran rule!

'Tap, Tap!'

People of Earth had done a lot to tame their sister planet, but that was thousands of years ago!

'Tap! Tap!'

Surely the Titans had earned the right to govern themselves now!

_**'SCREEEEEEEEEEEK'**_

Usagi nearly jumped off her bed at the shrill sound. Removing her face from her pillow, she saw a black cat was sitting on her windowsill, three long claw marks etched into the glass. Hurriedly, she opened the window and gently brought the kitty inside. It was a three hundred foot drop from her window to the ground. She didn't need to add a dead kitty to today's list of already horrible events.

"It's about time! I thought I was going to fall!"

"What? Who said that?" Usagi looked all around the room, but decided she must have imagined it. When Usagi looked back at the cat she saw it had an odd crescent mark on its forehead.

"Usagi-chan, I have a very special request for you."

Again Usagi looked all around. "Mommy? Was that you?" She called, thinking her mother might have spoken from elsewhere in the house.

"Over here Usagi-chan."

This time Usagi saw the cat's mouth move. She sighed in relief, for a moment there she thought she was hearing things. Usagi picked up the cat and flipped it onto its back. Searching through its fur, she tried to find an off switch. It was a robot, that's how it managed to get onto her windowsill.

"Hahaha, stop that Usagi-chan! It tickles!"

Finding a raised bump on the cat's chest, Usagi pinched it.

"Reow!" The cat swiped at her hand, hissing at her. "That hurt!"

Usagi just picked the thing back up and continued to search. Once the fake cat was off, she could take it to her mom and get help.

"Usagi! What are you doing!"

Setting the cat down, Usagi tried a different tactic. "Deactivate," she said, hoping it might operated off of verbal commands. But the cat just blinked in confusion. So she tried a few more words. "Shut down! Sleep! Turn off!"

"Uh, Usagi-chan?"

"Switch off! Stop! Oh fine, let's try… Who do you belong to?"

"Usagi-chan, I don't…"

"What is your owner's name and address?"

"Usagi, wait, just listen…"

"What is your manufacturer and serial number?"

"**USAGI! JUST BE QUIET AND LISTEN UP!"**

Usagi's mouth snapped shut. Now that she thought about it, how did this robot even know her name?

"I am not some machine or android, like you seem to think I am! I'm a _real_ cat!"

Usagi just laughed, "Don't be silly, real cats can't talk."

The cat looked a bit put out, if a robot cat could look that. "Look, Usagi-chan, my name is Luna and I _am_ a real cat. I have something very important to tell you."

Usagi nodded solemnly, deciding to humor the thing and see what this was all about.

"That's better. I have been looking for you for a long time Usagi-chan."

Nod, nod.

"There have been some really weird things happening in Tokyo recently. There is an enemy that not even the police can face."

Nod, nod.

"Usagi-chan, you are going to fight these enemies. You are the chosen senshi! And your mission is to find and to lead the other senshi."

Nod, nod.

"Usagi-chan! Are you even listening to me?"

"Of course I was, go on." In fact, she had tuned out most of what the cat thing had said. Instead, she had been reflecting on how terrible her day had been.

"You still don't believe me do you? Fine then, how about this!" The cat leapt into the air, doing a summersault then landing back on her feet. Out of the air where she had spun, a gold disk with five different colored jewels on its face appeared and plopped onto her bed.

Usagi blinked and looked at the object, transportation technology was still in the first stage. What had just happened was impossible!

"There!" The cat said, sounding rather satisfied with herself. "Now pick that up and repeat after me: 'Moon Prism Power, Make-Up!'"

Usagi couldn't help herself. She picked up the object, feeling a familiar tingling shoot through her hand as she held it. Raising it above her head in and unconscious motion, she shouted, "Moon Prism Power, Make-Up!"

Usagi's clothes melted away as she was bathed in light. Then, out of the air, new clothing appeared to replace the old. When it was over, she found herself standing in the middle of her room wearing what most closely resembled a sailor school uniform along with a tiara and two large hairpieces that rested in front of the hair buns atop of her head.

"W-what just happened?" Usagi squeaked.

"You transformed into the senshi of love and justice, Sailor Moon!"

"What? That's impossible! What does that even mean!"

"No, it is not impossible," Luna said patiently, "it's magic."

"That's the same thiiing!"

"Magic is real Usagi-chan." The cat had a concerned expression on her face as she looked into the pink haired girl's eyes.

"No, it's… Wait," Usagi clapped her hands to her ears, "I hear something…"

"What is it? What do you hear?" There was a new sound of urgency in Luna's voice.

"I hear… I hear screaming. People, people are calling out for help. And I feel something, it's odd… I, I don't like it… it's… cold, and dark, and, and…" She shivered, she couldn't tell what else she felt but just that it was something, something…

"Can you tell where it's coming from? We must help those people!"

"It's, it's… coming from, from… That way!" Usagi finger pointed down and to the east.

"Hurry, open the window Usagi-chan."

Usagi didn't even question the cat as she opened the window, that cold feeling still foremost in her mind. The cat jumped lightly onto the windowsill. Then, without so much as a backward glance at the girl turned senshi, Luna jumped off into thin air.

Usagi cried out in shock and ran to the window, fully expecting to see a black speck of kitty falling into the distance. Instead, she saw the strange cat had landed easily one of the large tubes used by the Pills.

"Jump," the cat shouted up at her, "Sailor Moon, jump!"

Usagi backed away and shook her head. The kitty was insane! The tube was almost twenty feet down, even if she hit the tube, Usagi would be injured and surely fall off afterwards. She wouldn't do it!

"You must jump Sailor Moon!" A sense of urgency entering the cat's voice.

There was no way she was jumping. No way. What was that cat, creature, thing thinking? Asking her to do something so stupid. Usagi backed further away from the window, shaking her head. Then, the voices returned. Men and women pleading for help. They were even loader then before, screaming, crying out for someone to help them. They needed a savior, they needed Sailor Moon!

"In the name of love and justice! For the innocent people who need you!" Luna yowled into the night. "Jump! SAILOR MOON!"

She jumped.

Then screamed in pure terror. The scream ending with a splat as Usagi managed her second face-plant of the day.

Luna winced.

At least this time it was just soot that stuck to her face, instead of the floor slime from the Pill. And, amazingly, she felt OK. Her nose throbbed a bit. But, other than that, she felt perfectly fine.

Standing on that curved surface was another huge act of courage. And it was only complicated by the most inconvenient pair of heels, courtesy of her Senshi uniform. But the cries for help drove her up and on. Soon Sailor Moon was running on top of the tube, Luna keeping pace beside her.

The voices that filled her mind led her to a night district, the kind that was full of high class dance clubs and also where the most expensive prostitutes could be found. Fortunately for Usagi's innocent eyes however, the normal activities of the district had closed down and police were everywhere. Officers wore riot gear and S.W.A.T. armored transports flew in, unloading their black clothed occupants. Above, both police and news hovercrafts filled the sky.

"Lunaaa," Usagi whispered, "I don't think we should be here."

Luna let a stern eye rest on the girl. "Wherever there are innocent people in danger, there Sailor Moon should be also!"

"But the police are everywhere! They can take care of whatever's wrong…"

"The police can not handle this foe!"

"But Lunaaa," Usagi knew she sounded childish but she had to make the kitty see sense, "There are cameras everywhere! What if someone recognizes me? I can't be seen here, not like this!"

"Usagi-chan, no one will recognize you." Luna explained patiently. "A glamour was included in your transformation, no one can tell who you are."

Usagi took no heart from this information and only hunkered down lower, determined to stay out of sight.

A balding man stepped forward in a reflective metal vest, designed to protect the wearer from both lasers and firearms alike. He slowly brought a loudspeaker to his lips. Usagi was pretty sure he was about to make some sort of demand. But, before he could speak, the whole area went dark. Every single light, sign, and glow winked out at the same time. Even the spotlights over head were black.

There was confusion everywhere as the police scrambled to find the source of the sudden outage. It was then that a single lholo-screen came to life. Displayed was the face of a man, or at least, Usagi thought it was a man. She couldn't be sure because what she really saw was the black helmeted head of someone in a dark cloak with gold trim.

"Welcome!" the man's voice boomed out from a thousand speakers. And, with that one word, every holo-projector within a hundred yards switched on. Each image was of the same. Each showed the black helmet and gold cloak. The figure was mirrored a million times over in every street and alleyway, on every phone, gameboy, and laptop. The faceless multitude stared out at their dumbstruck audience and it was as if Usagi could hear their combined laughter at the silence they had caused.

"Welcome," the figure said again, his voice as black as night and terrible as thunder, echoing from every corner, booming out from every alley, "I am your host, Zero. And welcome to the debut of the Black Knights!" One arm swept artfully out as half the holograms changed. Men and women, dressed in black uniforms, stood guard over a group of people who huddled in fear in the center of the room. The camera zoomed in to capture the faces of weeping women and pale faced men, some were bruised while others had long scratches and torn clothes, all looked as though they had suffered. Usagi's felt her heart twinge at the sight, but cowered still further from sight.

A soft chuckle brought everyone's attention back to the Zero's inscrutable, masked face. "Yes, yes sad…" he said, sounding positively cheerful at how he had abused the hostages. "But… if our demands are not met, I will be forced to kill every last one of these poor, poor people." Then man paused, as if he had just thought of something amusing, "If I'm not mistaken, there are some rather prominent individuals in this crowd…" Waggling one finger he continued, "I don't think that's how the people want their money to be spent, Mr. Senator."

There was something scary in the way the man spoke and moved that belayed his light words and chilled Usagi more than she could describe.

The police had recovered quickly from their shock and searchlights roared back to life. The dark cloaked man was stood on the balcony of the surrounded building, as if he had wanted to be seen. The Zero hadn't even flinched under the sudden light. In fact his dark cloak almost seemed to absorb the light, twisting it and pulling it into tendrils darkness that swirled in around him like a second robe. Shadows spread out from beneath his feet in all directions. Larger than they had any right to be, they danced under the shifting spotlights. The myriad of silhouettes seemed to Usagi to be the legs of some monstrous spider, one that had just begun to spin its loathsome web.

"TAKE THE SHOT!" Even Usagi could hear the order as the balding man bellowed into his microphone.

Red lines of power cascaded from every building, beams of pure destructive energy, all aimed at one man. But just before crashing into the black figure, each one was turned aside. It was as if the invisible hand of a giant had blocked their path. Rocketing away, they dissipated harmlessly in the surrounding buildings.

"So be it." Zero's voice reverberated with malice, coming from every direction at once.

Usagi's eyes returned to the hostages and she gasped in horror. The men and women she had almost thought stylish in their matching black uniforms now changed. Hair grew and fangs bulged from over large mouths. Tails and claws ripped perfectly tailored seams and red eyes glowed from deep sockets. Then, everything was plunged into darkness once more as even the holo-screens turned black. There was an explosion, and then Usagi heard the screaming. She would have nightmares about those screams, but they were nothing compared to what she _saw_. Laser fire lit fangs and claws as S.W.A.T. transports were sent flying. Riot shields were ripped to shreds as the street was flooded in red.

The police tried to hold the line, but their lasers fire went straight through the beastmen. Gaping holes closed instantly and seared fleshed flaked away to reveal new, healthy skin beneath. The police officers were thrown about like ragdolls, until only chaos reigned.

Usagi could see everything from where she cowered. Tears rolled down her face and only the fear kept her from crying out. She watched in wide eyed horror as an arm flew from the melee only to land beside her.

"Sailor Moon!" Luna was shouted in her ear, but Usagi was in a state of shock and could even here the cat. She just kept staring at the blood pooling from beneath the arm, unwilling to accept that this nightmare could be her reality.

"Sailor Moon! You must act!" Luna's paws pounded against Usagi's chest. Her big, cat eyes showing her own fear and desperation.

"Go away…" Usagi said quietly, "just leave me alone…"

"You are the only one who can stop this! The only one who can defeat those monsters is you!" Luna yowled in desperation. "It is up to you, and you alone!"

Usagi looked at the cat in disbelief, dark despair clouding her eyes. "But, but what can I do against… _that_!" She howled, gesturing forlornly to the arm, to the beastmen, and to the general carnage below.

She didn't even try to stop it as tears poured freely down her cheeks and her nose dripped into her mouth. It was hopeless, _hopeless_! Even if should could somehow manage to defeat those monsters, what then? That black hearted man would surely kill the hostages.

"Think!" Luna shouted. "You are Sailor Moon! You fight for love and justice! _Believe_ Usagi-chan, you must believe in yourself!"

Usagi shook her head and her body trembled. But Luna took her head in both her paws and forced Usagi to look again at the chaos that had been made of the police. Usagi saw a young woman, lit only briefly by the red light of sniper fire. She was twitching in pain as blood poured from a missing leg. Usagi couldn't stop the sob of pity that escaped her mouth, before the officer was once more cloaked in darkness. But seeing at that woman, bloody and torn as she had been, Usagi knew that she could not sit idly by. She could not cower in her little corner as people suffered and died right before her eyes. And, for the first time since she donned the uniform of Sailor Moon, Usagi began to feel the power that came with that name and title.

Memories, memories only half remembered, stirred inside her. They lifted her to her feet, causing her to stand and face the darkness that surrounded her. She was Sailor Moon! She had fought for love and justice since she was but a child! A million demons she had banished, and a million evil men had she laid to rest. No half breed filth was going to stop her from protecting the innocent! No mutated creatures of darkness could cause her to cower and hide her face from what needed to be done!

Usagi's jaw clenched and Luna could see the light that blazed in her eyes. "Yes… Yes! That's it, Sailor Moon! Now, for your first attack. Grab your tiara and repeat after me: 'Moon Tiara Action!' Then throw it for all you're worth!"

Usagi lifted a delicate hand and took the tiara from her head. She held the ornament in front of her and was somehow unsurprised as it turned into a disk of golden, glowing energy. Taking aim at the nearest monster, she didn't need to see it, but could feel the dark presence. She could sense as it crouched over something on the ground. Pulling her arm back, she spoke the words Luna had just taught her.

"MOON TIARA ACTION!"

The disk flew straight and true, slicing the monster in half, transforming the foul creature into dust. But the disk didn't stop there, Usagi wouldn't let it. Exerting her will over the golden energy, she turned it, directing it at the next monster, and the next, and the one after that. She kept that little disk going until it had destroyed each and every monster she could reach with her senses.

When the tiara finally returned to her, she was exhausted. She slumped against the nearest wall and panted for air. Usagi felt drained down to her very soul.

There was a soft thunk as something landed next to her and her back stiffened. The silhouette was dark against the gloom. But, at that very moment, as if it responded to some cosmic cue, a spotlight flashed to life.

Zero stood there, like a wraith in the night. His black helmet gleamed with menace, the only part of him to reflect any light.

His laugh was deep and twisted by the inner fire of hatred. "Well done, I did not think it was possible. You have humbled me. But please, let me know the name of the one who could best all of my creations in a single instant?"

Usagi suppressed an almighty shiver, the man's voice was dark and persuasive. She could feel it chip away at her will, making her want to obey him unconditionally.

Still, she stood, feet spread, and announced herself for all the world to hear.

"I Am the Warrior Who Fights for Love and Justice! I Am the Beautiful Sailor Suited Senshi! I Am SAILOR MOON!"

Usagi half expected to hear the man's twisted laugh once more. But when the man spoke next, his voice was soft and quiet. "So you are," he said, almost murmuring it to himself, "so you are…" He turned away from her in a swirl of black. "So what now, Sailor Moon? Do you punish me, in the name of _justice_?" His voice once again strong and heavy with a dark purpose.

"Of course!" was Usagi's immediate reply. Her hand shot up to grab the tiara from her forehead.

"But then," Zero continued, "if you did… What would happen to the hostages?"

Usagi's hand stopped, this man, this evil, clever man wouldn't just leave the hostages unguarded, would he? Had she done something to harm them like she had originally feared! But no, he wouldn't be here, talking like this, if they were already dead. Would he?

"If you've harmed a hair on those people's heads I'll…"

"You'll what?" The man shouted, voice dripping with sarcasm. Usagi felt the breath knocked from her body by the mere force of his words. The man laughed softly at her and continued in a lighter tone. "But look! The hostages are well…"

With an airy wave of his arm, all the holo-screens clicked back to life.

Usagi looked away. She could not bear to look in the eyes of the people she could not save.

"WHAT!"

Usagi's head snapped up. Zero's shout had been one of anger and surprise.

"That… is… impossible!" Every word forced out from behind the dark visor.

Usagi looked up just in time as the tip of a thorny, green blade exited the last beastman's skull. Before she could take in the man who wielded that green blade, the Black Knight's leader turned on her with a snarled. Lifting his hand, dark fingers came together as they pinched the air. Usagi watched in fascinated horror as the man drew from the ether a crackling bolt of lightning.

Usagi could feel her blood turn cold and sweat beaded her back. She wanted to run, but her feet were rooted to the spot. She wanted to do something… But her body just wouldn't _move_! Her bones ached, she was so tired. And, as shameful it was to admit even to herself, she was just too afraid.

The dark form lifted the bolt of energy over his head, ready to strike at her heart. And all Usagi could do was stand and watch her death unfold.

Red flashed against the dark of night. A scream rent the air and the lightning died in a crack of thunder. The dark man was crouched before her, one hand cradling the other. From the back of Zero's hand blossomed a single rose, impossibly perfect, vividly red.

"Fear not, Sailor Moon!" Usagi looked, and there, on the balcony, stood the swordsman. "Help will always there when danger threatens!" He wore a black tuxedo, a small white mask over his eyes. In one hand, he held a green sword. It was long and thorny, a miniature rose adorning its pummel. In the other, he held what could only be a common rose, the twin of the one piercing the helmeted man's hand.

The beastmen's leader turned on the newcomer and the very air crackled with his furry. But it was at this moment that some instinct kicked in and Usagi used Zero's distraction to her advantage. Summoning her power once more, she called out her attack.

"MOON TIARA ACTION!"

The golden disk sliced through the man. His dark shape crumpled and Usagi let out a long held breath. A hope she had held, a hope never to repeat this night.

She waited several minutes but the dark lump did not move. She wanted to check the body, but was too afraid of what she might see if she got any closer. A brief squeeze on her shoulder, before she had realized it, swordsman was next to her. Reaching down, he lifted up a black cloak with gold trim, severed cleanly in two.

"AHAHAHAHAHA!"

The evil laugh came out of the night, and seemingly from every direction at once.

"We will meet again!" The dark voice shouted as it faded into the distance. "Until the next time, Sailor Moon!"

Usagi could only feel relief, it was over for now, at least. And one thought did comfort her, she knew one strong ally would be on her side. She looked around for the swordsman, hoping to speak to him, but he had already gone, disappearing into the night.

It was then that Usagi noticed the balding man who had been in charge of the strikeforce, three large rents marred in his no longer shiny vest. He was making a beeline for her with a grim expression on his face. It was time for her to disappear as well. She didn't like the idea of explaining to the police about the talking cat who had persuaded her to interfere, nor why she had chosen to come in such scanty attire.

Exhausted Usagi made it back to her house but nearly fell climbing in her window. Without a second thought, collapsed onto her bed. In the back of her mind, she just wished she could forget the whole night's events. Usagi would be only too happy to go back to the snide remarks and whispers of Furinkan High if only it meant she could forget Zero's twisted laugh.

The last thing she felt before sleep took over was a warm, furry creature cuddling up next to her. At least she had her cat…

* * *

In a place covered in grey mist, divorced from both time and space, a man shrugged on a freshly pressed black cloak with gold trim. Next to him stood a woman with long green hair, her mouth set in a grim line.

"What do you think you were doing out there?" The woman admonished him.

"What you told me I should be doing." Replied the dark clothed man, his helmet hiding an amused expression.

"_That_ was not what I had had in mind!" The woman's voice, tight with emotion.

"I thought it went rather well, actually."

"Well? That was a disaster! What if they had…"

"But they didn't. Don't worry so much." The man's tone was cocky, almost arrogant.

"But so many were…"

The man cut her off again. "This was just the opening act. The next time will be different."

"Hmmm," the woman didn't look convinced, "just be careful. I don't want any mistakes."

"Stop worrying! I have everything under control, you'll see…"

* * *

Phew! Well that's chapter one done with. Not bad progress, if I say so myself! If anyone out there is confused, GOOD! You're supposed to be confused at this point. Although, if you're too confused, then I'd suggest looking at the date at the beginning of the chapter for reference. It will probably take me a while to get the next chapter done so use this time to read Destiny's Child if you haven't yet. Or if you have already read it, then read it again!

* * *

Yeah, so this is revision two. I was working on chapter four and felt I needed to re-read my earlier chapters. But when I did, I realized just how many errors there were! Since I was having a bit of a block at the time, I decided I might as well clean up my other chapters. Well, I ended up changing more than I expected, but that's ok. This version is closer to what I had envisioned in my mind. The most important thing for me, especially with this first chapter, is just getting stuff out. If I worry too much about things being perfect, they never get done. I don't intend on publishing unfinished work, but don't be surprised if I continue to revise things in the future.


	2. Chapter 2

The Third Rising: The unofficial continuation of Destiny's Child

By: The Man Behind the Curtain

Original Story By: Fire

Ok, took me a while but, chapter 2 as promised. Revision two, 'cause I can't get things right the first time.

All rights to characters, ideas, names, and anything else I've stolen from one series or another belong to their rightful creators and no one else. If there are any complaints about them being used here, I don't exist. You couldn't find me if you tried and you wouldn't want to. But once again, I have taken laptop in hand to write a story that will not stay confined in my head for my own amusement.

* * *

Chapter Two:

Wednesday, August 13th, 7059 A.C.E. (After Crystal Era)

She was made breathless by the Queen's power, in this blood red night, a miracle had been performed. It wasn't a mere asteroid or comet that had been stopped, but an entire moon. A moon even larger than their own. Titan, with but a third of Earth's diameter, it could still have turned their blue planet into nothing more than dust in solar winds. The ability to perform such a miracle, however, had cost the Queen a great deal.

The orange orb had been growing ever larger since the red sun had blossomed in the night sky, but none had noticed until it was almost too late. A pinprick of color against the red light, it had grown until it matched the Moon's image as seen from Earth.

Watching then, as courtiers scrambled and great persons shouted useless advice, she felt her mind calculate just how fast the moon must have traveled in order to arrive at the Earth so fast. Her mind not stopping there, she went on to determine its momentum and the force of the inevitable impact. Facts and figures skipped and danced through her head, forming intricate patterns, flowing and merging into whole worlds, only to be shattered by orange lights. She could often find piece in solving problems, as did her mother. Her mother…

The bluster and babble quieted as all eyes turned to the Queen. She had raised her hands as if in prayer, lifted to the pale pink face that was the symbol of her power. The Moon no longer shone with silver beauty, tainted by the new sun's baleful influence.

She couldn't help believing that the Queen's actions were nothing more than what they seemed, a last desperate prayer called hopelessly into the night. But, to her everlasting amazement, the Queen defied the laws of the universe to grant her people one last reprieve. She watched as the Moon, the Queen's first birthplace, drifted faster across the red filled darkness.

Sweat poured down the Queen's face, but somehow her perfect poise and grace did not falter for an instant. The Queen was directing the Moon by sheer force of will, she could only image the strain it caused on the Queen's mind.

Even larger in the sky, Titan was ringed all around by the Red Sun, a ruby red iris to Titan's fiery pupil. She felt herself shudder, as numbers crashed back into her head, but the Queen had known what she was about. She completed her great working in the nick of time.

The Queen's face showed pain for the first time that night as the Moon crashed into Titan. Four million, the number flashed through her mind in a thousand shades of red. The last census had reported almost four million people living on the Moon. How many could have escaped?

Titan's orange atmosphere billowed away as the Moon struck. Stripped of its opaque exterior, she could now see Titan's roiling, green surface.

It was a daring plan, she thought, and one that required great sacrifice. But, even now, it could go so wrong. For a moment of gut wrenching fear, she almost thought it had. Titan's surface buckled as pink touched green. Emerald waves rippled away across Titan's face. If Titan shattered beneath the blow, the debris would kill the seventy billion people of Earth just as surely as if Titan had struck in its entirety.

Perhaps because of the materials of which Titan was made, or by some act of God, or even the by the incredible will of the Queen, Titan's surface continued to ripple and flux beneath the pink orb. The Moon entered that roiling green surface like a stone dropped into a vat of molasses, green engulfing pink until only one sphere rested in the sky.

Even then, she couldn't stop the numbers that swirled in her head. But, with the Moon, the symbol of her Queen's strength, resting in the heart of Titan, the rogue moon was now within the Queen's domain. With a gesture of finality, theQueen forced Titan to orbit the Earth, fixing it forever in the night sky.

She looked with pride to the Queen, and her breath was stolen from her chest. The Queen was slumped in her King's arms, her once golden hair was pure white, her once ageless face bearing all the marks of time upon it. She felt tears on her face as everything she was shattered. What was there left to life, if even her Queen was dead? A frail chest slowly began to rise and fall, and she could feel light returning to her world. But the trials of that blood red night were not over yet…

* * *

Shion Blueriver woke slowly, stretching and yawning as she did. If she remembered the terrifying but amazing dream she had just had, she didn't show it. A very practical person, she believed dreams to be nothing more than the subconscious at play. So, did not even try to remember what had already faded from her mind.

Her hand fumbled slowly at her nightstand, hitting the lamp, the clock, a myriad of holo-recordings of famous scientists, before eventually finding a pair of thick spectacles that she carefully placed on her freckled nose. Groaning, she flopped off her bed with an audible thump, a sound that her newest diet hadn't softened by a single decibel, she noted sarcastically.

She went through the rest of her morning routines in a similar state of drowsiness. Finishing, she slumped down the stairs, and into her parents' shop. Her parents were what you might call 'traditionalists'. Instead of operating their business over the net, like most sensible people did, they insisted on speaking to all their customers face-to-face. This resulted in a small, albeit dedicated, clientele that barely managed to keep them in business.

It was all her grandfather's fault, she knew it. He had filled her father with strange ideas since the moment he was born. It was a poor excuse to say that her father wasn't odd as he could have been, but her mother wasn't any better. Extremely devout, she cared for nothing besides her family and her God. _Not_ someone to talk sense into her husband when he undertook a suicide venture. The only good thing that could be said about her parents was that they let her walk her own path.

She was going to be a scientist. Someone fully tethered in the rules and order which ran the universe. She would build wonders! She already had an idea for a fully autonomous battle android that would take humans off the front lines.

"Good morning sweetie!" Her mother said, already cheerfully manning the register. "Your father needs help with some crates out back. Would you mind giving him a hand?"

Shion nodded mechanically, going around to the back of the store. This should have been her older brother Kain's job, but he had run off to places unknown with her grandfather and now she was stuck with manual labor. Not that she minded, after all: 'A healthy body means a healthy mind.' This was one of her grandfather's few useful sayings, and something she had taken to heart since she was very small.

"Thanks, honey." Her father said, bending over a large plastic box with Orbis marked on the side. "Just grab that side and help me get this into the storeroom."

The box was heavy, heavier than most girls her size could manage, but she was used to the work and hefted up her end without much trouble. Job finished, she was about to turn and leave when her father caught her arm. Gently lifting his other hand, he brushed a strand of red hair away from her face.

"Hey, wait up a bit."

She looked questioningly at her father and made to move away again when he continued.

"I just… I wanted to say thanks, you know, for always helping out." She squirmed a little bit at her father's awkward, overly earnest expression of gratitude. "I know things have been tough for you at school lately, and… and it must be hard dealing with a father like me. So… just, thanks. Thanks for always sticking it out. Your mother and I are really proud of you."

Her heart gave a little and wrapped him in a hug. He may be awkward, backward thinking, and have no business sense at all, but he did love her. In the end, that was all that really mattered.

He smiled, intensely pleased to have given her some comfort. He then mussed her hair a bit, shoving her lightly toward the door. "Go on, get out of here. And get something to eat, you're too thin!"

She couldn't help smiling to herself as she left the storeroom, happy at least that he was happy.

It was another half an hour of chores before she could leave and got on the Pill that would take her to Furinkan High School. Furinkan High was a school that only the most wealthy could afford to attended. Which made a girl of such modest means like her out of place in the extreme. She had known how it would be when she used her all inclusive scholarship to get in, but she had some hope that she could make connections to help her later in life. Sadly, she would have been better off going to a techie school instead.

After a year spent at Furinkan High, the vast majority of students had ignored her. There was a good percentage, however, who went out of their way to torment her. Why she had chosen to stay at the school for another year was a mystery even to her. But it probably had something to do with that stubborn, proud part of her she'd inherited from her grandfather. It was a type of bullheadedness that caused her to plow forward with whatever decision, no matter how poorly it was turning out.

As she was dourly reflecting on her less than happy school life, Shion also read the latest scientific article about Realians, a type of artificial human, still in their developmental stage. So she didn't quite notice as anxious murmuring starting to grow around her.

It wasn't until a man next to her stood abruptly that she looked up. The man was as big as a bear. He had dark brown hair and tawny eyes that seemed to catch the light. His deep voice thundered out as he pointed at a building flashing past.

"That's my stop!" He said, deep voice echoing in the confined space. "Someone stop this thing, we need to go back!"

Nobody would meet the man's eyes as they flashed around the compartment. Now that she was paying attention, several other passengers seemed visibly distressed. Still, none of them moved to do anything.

Awkward minutes passed as the Pill made no sign of stopping.

"Oh, for the love of…" The big man grumbled, his patience at its end.

Shion's blue eyes peered over her glasses as she watched the man intently. He was beginning to search for something in the Pill's cramped quarters.

"Can anyone find a service number?" His voice rumbled, "We need to stop this thing."

Again, no one moved to help.

* * *

Usagi was late. She'd gotten very little sleep over the last week. Nightmares plagued her dreams. She would wake to the sound of screaming only to see her room covered in blood. Faces would appear, faces she didn't even remember, crying out in terror as a man laughed horribly in the background. Then she would wake for a second time and be surprised to see how normal her room looked. But somehow worse were those dreams she couldn't remember. They dreams left her hollowed out inside, feelings of hopelessness and loss lingering for hours until she faded back into sleep.

It had been almost a week since she'd met Zero and defeated his monsters. But the dreams only got worse. She worried for hours each day, knowing the man would be back.

At least she had her cat. Luna hadn't lied, no one recognized that Usagi had been Sailor Moon. Even her own mother didn't know what Usagi had been doing that night. The footage was everywhere, Usagi's parents just stared in shock as they watched the horror unfold. But neither of them realized the brave little girl in the short skirt was, in truth, their own daughter. They hadn't even looked at her when she asked if she could keep the stray cat she'd found. Later, when her mother realized just how bad Usagi's nightmares were, she had to let the girl keep her cat.

School life had improved for Usagi, if only slightly. Everyone was too busy talking about Sailor Moon to bother with her. Katan still kept at her, his joking innuendos and thinly veiled comments had become just another part of her morning routine. But it was the lack of friends that hurt the most.

Usagi ran head long into the station, the Pill just rounding the bend. She landed on the platform breathless, as the capsule whizzed past her. She panted while holding a stitch in her side. She looked after the Pill in disbelief. She had gotten to the platform before it, she was sure she had. So why hadn't it stopped?

Usagi resigned herself to the five minute wait that would make her that much later to her first class. She took a seat on a bench and watched the bend in the pipe for the next Pill to come through.

When it did, she stood up, eagerly waiting for it to stop. She was determined not to let anyone criticize her for being late. She watched it approach and began to worry. Even for the notoriously quick stops of the Pills, this one was cutting it close. It kept on coming, not slowing as it blasted through the station.

What was going on? Were her eyes playing tricks on her?

She waited and watched two more Pills go through the station before she accepted that they weren't going to stop. What would she tell her mother? Would she believe that Usagi _couldn't_ go to school?

"Mommy, I'm home!" Was Usagi's doleful shout as she entered her house.

There was a pounding on the stairs and Usagi winced. Closing her eyes, she waiting for the telling off she knew was about to come. Arms wrapped around her and her eyes snapped open. Her mother was sobbing into Usagi's shoulder as she pressed her daughter to her.

"Usagi! Oh, Usagi you're safe! You're safe!" her mother bawled out, her tears darkening Usagi's bright pink hair. "When you didn't come back right away I was so worried! I thought you had actually managed to get on the Pill, and you forgot your phone, so I couldn't call!"

Baffled, all Usagi could do was pat her mother's back softly as the woman cried. And cried. And sobbed. And cried some more.

Looking over her mother's shoulder, Usagi saw Luna coming down the stairs. The cat had an impatient expression on her feline face.

"MOM!" Usagi shouted trying to break through her mother's hysterics. "Just stop and tell me what's going on!"

"You *sniff* you mean… you *sniff* haven't heard?"

"Heard what?" Usagi was worried, looking to her kitty rather than her mother.

Luna was wearing a kitty frown. Usagi could see her tail twitch back and forth restlessly, the cat equivalent to tapping your foot.

"It's all over the news!" Her mother said dramatically. "I was just sitting there, watching my favorite soap _Guiding Light_[1],and suddenly it's interrupted by an emergency broadcast! They said some maniac had high jacked the Pill Control Center and was holding the passengers hostage. I thought it might be some new plot arch, but then I saw who the criminal was! It was that man from last week, Zori! The one that brave little girl stood up to all alone."

"What!" Usagi said, her worst fears confirmed.

"I know! Isn't it just horrible! And here I was sitting at home, thinking you had been taken hostage. Well, it's a good thing your father..."

"That's nice Mommy." Usagi said cutting off her mother in mid sentence. Luna had her eyebrows raised, waiting for her. "Since I can't get to school today, I think I'll spend the rest of it in my room, ok? Bye."

Without waiting for her mother's confused reply, Usagi ran up to her room, closing and locking the door behind her. Sighing, she shot a plaintive look to the cat who had proceeded her up the stairs. Luna said nothing, just went to the remote and flipped the holo-screen on.

The hologram buzzed to life, showing a pretty, young reporter with a grim expression.

"What we are now experiencing is an act of terror of unprecedented proportions." The reporter said. "For those of you just tuning in, near one third of the Tokyo Metropolitan population is being held hostage. Held hostage by the very system that has allowed this city and cities liked it around the world to function for the past five hundred years. The Tolar Tower has been invaded! Every Pill in the city is now under the control of one man… Greetings, I am Naomi Novik from channel 1122's breaking news department. What makes this terrifying event even worse is that this incident has been brought about by the same man responsible for the carnage one week ago. An event people are now calling the Flash Nightclub Incident. The failure of the police to apprehend this man and those associated with him brought about the crisis we are in now. Only ten minutes ago we received this footage from the terrorist along with the list of his demands."

The hologram's image changed and Usagi saw again the helmet encased face of Zero.

"We meet again." Her flesh crawled at his deep, twisted voice. It felt like he had spoken directly to her. "I have taken complete control over every single Pill in the city in the name of the Black Knights and for the free land of Japan! We would like to prevent unnecessary deaths during this time, so your swift compliance will be appreciated. I will give you five hours, after that the Pills to begin to collide. Ten for every hour I must wait after that. And don't worry, I'll be starting with those from the, uh, _wealthier_ districts. For my first demand! The immediate secession of Japan from the United Confederate of Terra…"

The voice faded as the hologram refocused on the reporter. "This man, styling himself Zero, goes on to make over one hundred demands. Neither I, nor the authorities, have a complete list at this point, but all follow the same lines as his first. The secession and creation of the nation of Japan, consisting of the islands of the Tokyo Metropolitan area. This country is to be lead by the man Zero himself, as an unconditional emperor. These demands are of course…"

Usagi stopped listening and looked to her cat. Her eyes barely held her tears in check. She knew what to expect. She knew that she was in for another day of horrors. She knew that more nightmares would plague her after this night. And, she knew, she knew more people would die if she did nothing. She knew all this but she still asked her cat the question.

"I have to go, don't I?"

Luna only nodded.

Lip trembling, Usagi lifted the little gold disk up and shouted. "Moon Prism Power, Make-Up!"

* * *

Shion watched as the man flipped open his phone only to stop as it began to ring in his hand. At almost the exact same time, there was a storm of beeping, chirping, and songs that filled the confined space. Phone had gone off at almost the exact same time.

In the next few moments, Shion was the only one not reassuring loved ones. Her parents had never gotten her a phone, insisting that whatever it was, it could be said to the person's face. Being the only person with a realistic idea of the family finances, Shion had not pushed it.

Now she regretted this lapse in judgment as she found herself totally out of the loop. She found herself worrying if anything had happened to her parents. For some reason, numbers flashed through her head and she found herself calculating quantum mechanics.

Women were stood, clutching their phones as if they were their loved ones themselves. Men's backs had stiffened as rigid masks quickly trapped deeper feelings inside. The inverse matrix multiplied by cos((456e^(i4))^78)…

Shion _had_ to figure out what was going on.

Shion got out of her seat and went over to the man who had made all the fuss earlier. She was determined to get information from the one man who wasn't afraid of action.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," the man said, reassuring the party on the other end. "Look, Makoto, I'm _fine_. Nothing's happened to us yet, I'm sure everything will turn out all right. I'm sorry, but I'm going to try calling Vector Industries. I want to see if I can get any more information. Tell my brother and your mom not to worry, and make sure Wiess doesn't do anything stupid. Ok, yeah, I love you too, bye." The man ended his call and started to type in a new number.

Standing behind him, Shion shuffled her feat nervously.

"Ummm, excuse me…" Why did her voice always have to come out so quiet? Why couldn't she just speak up like a normal person?

The man didn't look around, so Shion was forced to try again, this time she managed to be just a little louder than before.

"Err, excuse me."

He still didn't look her way and she was forced to tug on his sleeve to get his attention.

"Excuse me!" She blushed furiously. Having to resort to physical means galled her.

He turned, eyes flashing like a hawk's. Shion cowered as the man towered over her. Then, as if he had seen something he never expected, the lines around his eyes softened.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Umm, I just…" Shion mumbled in a small voice.

"Yes?" the man said, a rumble of impatience entering his voice.

"I was just wondering if you could tell me…"

"Speak up girl! I can't hear you over all this noise."

Shion winced at his tone. Still, she gritted her teeth and blurted out.

"COULD YOU PLEASE TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON!"

The whole compartment went quiet as everyone turned to look at her. Shion wanted to shrivel up in a corner and die. She had gone from too quite to too loud in an instant. Shion shrank as she felt everyone's disapproving eyes on her. The man just smiled at her, making his fierce face seem suddenly gentle.

"Some madman has hijacked all the Pills in the city." He said frankly. "We're all hostages."

"Oh," Shion said, letting out a sigh of relief, "is that all…"

The laugh cracked out like a clap of thunder. "Yes, that's all. Nothing we need to worry about."

Encouraged by this response Shion continued. "Yeah, I know." a small, tentative giggle entering her voice, "To think, all we have to do is put the Pill into emergency repair mode. It'll take us straight to the maintenance center and let us off."

The man gave her an odd then frowned. His eyes raked her face, as if searching for something hidden there. The man's hands gripped her shoulders, his fierce, golden eyes boring into her own.

"You know how to get us out of this? Are you sure?"

Shion nodded, frightened by his intensity. "I read about it once. I-I was ten. I w-wanted to know how the Pills worked so I…"

The man let out another sharp laugh. Shion felt his hand slap against her back, making stumble.

"Osu! Ok girl, what do we need to do?"

Shion couldn't help smiling to herself. Something about the man reminded her of someone she knew. He had a controlled, steady way of moving that made her think of her grandfather. But her grandfather was always self contained, this man liked big gestures. She moved to one side and showed him how to remove a panel to expose the circuitry. Maybe her brother, then?

* * *

Usagi could feel the difference in speed from that morning. Her heels were beating a steady staccato on the large tube as she sped towards her destination. The last time, she had barely noticed the incredible change in physical ability. Now she clung to the power that coursed through her limbs.

The curling spire of the Tolar Control Tower rose steadily in the distance, breaking through the sea of skyscrapers. The Tolar Tower held the mainframe which controlled the Pills and was also the place where Zero had set up camp.

With speed and agility that she would not have believed in anyone, let alone herself, she leapt from the tube. Landing in the rooftop garden of some building, she was off again almost at once. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, she stopped as a vast emptiness loomed before her.

Usagi looked down. Far, far below her, stretching out for miles around, were fields of pure grassland, groves of ancient trees, and the stunning display of a million flowers. The garden below her was the most famous landmark in all Tokyo, and at its center, jutted a single skyscraper. The white and gold tower curled upwards to brush the heavens, clouds wreathing its summit. It had been the tallest building for a thousand years. Some even said that it had been built on the foundations of a much, much older structure that dated back to before the fall.

A stain, however, marred this breathtaking sight. A black fungus had crawled over the landscape, pitting green fields and shadowing bright flowers. It shifted over millennia old trees and Usagi could just make out individual shapes in the shivering mass. The Black Knights had come in full force. An army of foul half-men were entrenched before her. How Zero had assembled this army of darkness, Usagi couldn't tell. But with this many beastmen at his disposal, he could do anything.

A clump of black detached itself from the white spire and swooped down on dark wings. Usagi shivered as a news hovercraft, having flown too close, was torn to ribbons. She watched as the vehicle caught fire and its passengers made a last, desperate jump for freedom.

"Lunaaa," Usagi said, looking at the small black cat who had followed her all the way there. "How am I supposed to get past that? I can't fight every monster here!" She thought that Luna might tell her to do just that.

A hand touched her shoulder.

"Pardon me."

The masculine voice came from behind her and she spun to look, a white gloved hand pushing her lightly to one side. The young man wore a black formal suit with a matching top hat. His cape billowed behind in the strong winds as he lifted his hand to the distant tower. Usagi blinked, something green had just shot from his hand. Before she could get a better look, the man turned and bowed. In his white gloved fingers was a single, perfect rose.

Usagi's mind froze. No one had ever given her something like this before. Her heart fluttered in her chest and she could feel the blood rushing to her face.

She reached out grasped the fresh green stem, looking deep into the blue eyes that sparkled at her from behind the small, white mask. White gloved fingers firmly held the rose, but he did not relinquish his gift just yet. Gently, he guided her other hand to the stem. Fingers brushed the back of her hand as he made a soft step back.

The mysterious man looked her up and down. Then he smiled. So mischievous was his expression that Usagi's romantic haze evaporated. A sense of foreboding ran through her body as his lips began to move.

"Hold tight." He almost laughed as the words left his mouth.

A sharp tug and Usagi felt the ground vanish. The rose in her was shooting into the air, a screaming Sailor Moon attached to its stem.

* * *

"Are you sure we should let her do that." The quavering voice, drifted to where Shion lay.

She looked up and saw a plump woman hovering over her. A shadow moved and she was blocked from view by broad shoulders. The low rumble that issued from the man's mouth was impossible to make out, but sparkling heels beat a quick retreat.

Content with the outcome, Shion returned to her work. The emergency repair system was an old function, rarely used in today's self-sustaining age. Still, no one had ever taken it out of the blueprints. If the Pill ever took a certain level of damage, the system would activate. The Pill would then be directed to the nearest maintenance dock. The important thing, however, was that it overrode all other commands in the process. What she had to figure out was how to activate it without actually harming the Pill. And, if that wasn't hard enough, she had to do it without any tools.

Of course, it wasn't impossible. Shion hadn't been scouted by every college in the world at twelve for nothing.

Using a simple hair clip, some loose change, and an inexpensive e-notebook, she managed what was beyond most adult mechanics. Shion had rerouted conditional reports from the lights, air conditioning, several external sensors, and a few redundant propulsion mechanisms and sent them through her notebook. She then sent resulting babble to the Pill's CPU. The massive amount of errors, gave the Pill's small computer fits and it had no choice but to activate the emergency repair system.

Overhead lights shifted to a dim red as the capsule lurched sickeningly. Dusting off her hands, Shion rose to her feet. All around small, angry eyes peered from dark faces.

"Now look what's happened!" The plump woman shouted, voice shill with fear. "She's killed us all!"

Shion shrank against the wall, numbers jumbling in her head. People like this terrified her, you never knew what they'd do next. She was just trying to help, and now they hated her. Why?

The tawny eyed man moved again, placing himself in front of Shion. The bear of a man growled at the other passengers, daring them to make a move.

Shion's feet left the floor as her stomach leapt into her throat. People screamed and the plump woman clutched at her neighbor's shoulder as everyone's feet lifted several inches off the floor.

Beyond the Pill's rounded windows entire levels of housing flashed past. They had taken a sharp branch down as they descended at incredible speeds. The light from the two suns was soon drowned as buildings towered around them. Smog thickened and Shion covered her mouth in disgust. The further down you went in Tokyo, the worse things got. Her family might be dirt poor, but at least they didn't live down here.

The ground rose to meet them and her vision went dark. It took a few moments before Shion realized that they were underground. Her foot met floor and everyone stumbled as they regained their proper weight. The hawk-eyed man was the only one who hadn't stumbled as the Pill leveled out. The man had not faltered once on their trip downward and now he regained his balance as if the laws of gravity meant nothing.

Screams slowly died as fathoms of dark stone hurtled past. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, Shion saw flashes of white amidst the bedrock. Completely out of place, they glowed in the darkness.

"What?" Shion breathed the word, curious in spite of herself.

The flashes grew in both quantity and size the longer she watched. Soon, the entire tunnel was filled with the soft light.

"We must be getting close to the Tolar Control Tower."

The deep voice made her jump. A tall figure stood over her shoulder, his gold eyes standing out in the gloom.

"Did you know?" His voice was low enough to make the floor vibrate. "The Tolar Tower was built over a much, much older structure."

Shion nodded silently. She had read about it once. Actually, she could probably tell him more about it than he could. But, she kept quiet. His voice had gripped her, and she wanted to hear what he had to say.

"It was long, long ago. A palace once stood overhead."

Intellectually, Shion knew this to be mere conjecture. There were a thousand theories on what had preceded the Tolar Tower.

"It was made of pure crystal, crafted by means long lost to us. Men and women traveled the stars just to gaze at its beauty. But it was nothing… It was nothing compared to the Queen who ruled there. Her kindness, her love for her people outshone the Sun, the stars… even the Moon..."

He turned, and she was startled to see tears in his eyes.

"I wonder…" His words were as soft as a night breeze. "Do you yet not remember?"

* * *

Blue sky far above, empty space below. Usagi squeezed her eyes shut, unable to watch as she was pulled across the sky. Any moment now the police would start firing or the beastmen would swoop down on her.

Something brushed past her wildly swinging leg, and squealed of terror. Opening her eyes, she looked at the thorny green rope that had appeared out of nowhere. She fallowed this new, green tendril and saw where it had taken root. The vine had imbedded itself in the top of the Tolar Tower, spanning the gap between the spire and where she had last stood. It was then that she realized the rose, held in a death grip with both hands, was connected to a similar tendril. It was pulling her to exactly where she needed to go.

She almost enjoyed the rest of the trip, almost. Actually, she still hated it. The masked man had purposefully tricked her, not telling her what would happen. With those clothes, you'd think he could be a little more gentlemanly.

She almost crashed into a wall and fell unceremoniously on to an observation platform. With effortless grace, the masked man landed next to her. Luna was held easily in the crux of one arm, fur sticking out in all directions.

Show off! She thought ungratefully. The man had no right to look so smug! How could he toy with her in such a situation?

A sardonic smile on his lips, he touched the brim of his hat then disappeared into the tower.

"Lunaaa," Usagi whined, the cat in question carefully licking her fur back into order. "Who was that? And what was that rose thingy? And why didn't you _tell_ me what was going to happen? You never _tell_ me anything!"

Luna sat back primly and looked Usagi squarely in the eye.

"I didn't have _time_ to tell you. Besides," she said haughtily, "you should have noticed the vine earlier."

Usagi puffed out her cheek and frowned at her cat, who had gone back to grooming herself. She was not being very helpful.

"Fine, but who _is_ he? Luna, I _need_ to know." Usagi had tried to asking this question many times before but Luna never gave her a real answer.

"I have my suspicions," Luna said carefully, "but it would be best for you to remembered that yourself."

"But whyyyy? Why can't you just _teellll_ meeee?"

"As for the rose," Luna said, ignoring the pink-haired girl's plaintive tone, "it is called a 'Bara-Hook'. The worst to travel imaginable."[2]

"Lunaaa! Who is he? How come he was there the last time? What is he doing here now?"

"Usagi!" Luna said, putting her foot down. "People are still in danger! Would you have me answer all your questions now and risk not helping them in time?"

"No…" she replied sullenly, but Usagi knew Luna would never give her a straight answer.

"The master controls are on the ground floor. Hurry, Sailor Moon, we can not let this situation continue any longer!"

* * *

A weight was lifted off Shion's chest as the Pill finally came to a stop. His words had stirred feelings inside her. Feelings that she didn't understand and didn't want to. She felt like a dark pit had been unearthed inside her and was terrified at what might lie at the bottom.

Doors slid open and the dark haired man stepped lightly out. He stood firmly on the platform of a large and dusty chamber, full of disused equipment. His tawny eyes glanced back at her and he held out his hand to help her out. Shion put her small hand in his large, calloused one and stepped up after him.

"Thank you, umm…"

"It's Juno, and it was no trouble." He reached across the gap once more, but stopped halfway. "I've just thought of something."

"Oh?" Shion said distractedly picking a cobweb off her arm.

"Yeah… We're under the Tolar Tower, right?"

"So it seems."

"Well, I was just thinking. I never heard where this villain had set up camp. If it were you, how would you go about hijacking the Pill system?"

"Hmm…" Shion said, her mind eating the problem up. "There are several ways it could be done."

"But what would be the easiest way."

"Well, without the proper manpower I couldn't hold for long, but technically speaking it'd be easiest from the main control center. There aren't many failsafes once you're actually at the terminal. It would be a simple task to rework the scheduled paths."

"Exactly!" Juno said, fierce eyes gleaming. "And where is the main control center located?"

"The Tolar Tower, of course. The ground floor, to be precise. They take tour groups by it. Actually, it shouldn't be… too far… over head…"

"What!" The excited squawk came from inside the capsule. "You mean that you took us straight to the madman who wants to kill us all?"

"I didn't know where the maintenance center was!" Shion's voice cracked as she tried to defend herself. She found it presumptuous of the speaker to criticize when everyone else would have just done nothing.

"Ha! Just like a child, never looking as you run head on into danger!" She could now see the plump woman from earlier was speaking. She whished she could say something in reply, but her throat tightened and no words would come out.

"I'm going to see how safe it is here." Juno's deep voice broke through angry muttering. "You all stay put until I get back."

"Don't worry about us! We won't be getting into any more trouble." The woman said haughtily. "But take that girl with you! She isn't wanted here."

Juno looked appraisingly at Shion before nodding to himself.

"You think you're up to it? I'll warn you now, things will get dangerous."

Shion looked from angry faces to Juno's brown-gold eyes. Swallowing back the lump in her throat, she answered meekly.

"I'll go with you."

A smile split Juno's face.

"I _knew_ you'd say that. I didn't catch your name."

"It's Shion, Shion Blueriver."

* * *

The tower was filled with beastmen, but if Usagi just followed the sooty path of the masked man, she met remarkably fewer enemies. It was a pity the elevators weren't working or she'd already be at the bottom. Instead, she had to make her way down endless flights of stairs.

Usagi burst onto the fire escape, sunlight temporarily blinding her. She dove to her right as a black shape swooped down from above. Hand flying to her forehead, she took the gold circlet from her head as she called out her attack.

"Moon Tiara Action!"

The golden disk made quick dust of the monster and returned to her hand. She didn't even look back, just kept on running down the stairs.

At the bottom of the fire escape, she flung open the door and ran inside. The moment she crossed the threshold, a white gloved hand covered her mouth and a low voice whispered into her ear.

"Shhh," it said, familiar and playful. "Step lightly, Sailor Moon, lest our enemies discover us."

Recognizing her masked ally, Usagi took this opportunity to take in her surroundings. She was in a large, circular room, so big that the curve of the walls was barely noticeable. Behind her, a black top-hat brushed the ceiling and far below her display cases littered a marble floor. Elevators and glass doors ringed the walls, but in the center of the room sat a colossal glass pyramid.

The two of them were standing on the wire mesh of a maintenance walkway over the grand entrance hall to the Tolar Tower. Inside the glass pyramid they would find what they needed to end this conflict, the mainframe that controlled all the Pills in the city.

But ending things would not be so easy. This famous room was packed with beastmen. Hairy, scaly, greasy, smelly, and foul, the creatures came in every shape and size but all were ugly.

Warm breath brushed lightly against her ear.

"Here's the plan… Wha!"

Sound boomed as the world rocked. Dust as debris shot everywhere. The ground disappeared from under Usagi's feet and she was falling. Falling as a man's arms wrapped around her and muffled her screaming mouth against his chest.

* * *

Shion wasn't sure why she was sticking her neck where it didn't belong. She would have been safer with the other passengers, angry as they might be. Her only consolation was that she had yet to actually see a terrorist.

At every new room, Juno would go first. Once he confirmed that the room was clear, Shion would silently go in after him. Down they would go through another dusty hallway or sooty computer lab. What the cleaning bots were doing to leave the rooms so dirty, she didn't know.

She also didn't quite understand why the lower levels were so completely vacant. But, she wasn't going to complain about her good fortune. It wasn't like she actually wanted to meet one of the monsters she had seen on TV, even though it would be fascinating to figure out what they were.

They were at the top of another flight of steps. Juno was looking cautiously around the corner, a grim expression on his face. She wondered if grim was just a default setting for him. His face always brightened the moment he opened his mouth, but the moment he closed it again he'd be back to grim.

All of the sudden, the man dove on her. His heavy form drove her small body to the ground. The wall overhead buckled and broke as chunks of mortar slammed rained down on Juno's broad back. Blood trickled down his face, but those fierce eyes did not show the slightest trace of pain as debris struck his body over and over again.

The dust settled, and the big man shook himself. He was like a grizzly bear annoyed after being hit by a few pinecones. Moving to the rubble pile that no separated them from the grand hall, Juno swore deep in his throat.

"What… What happened?" Shion said, her whole body shacking from shock.

"… Politicians… " Juno growled. "They sent in the army!"

"The army? Here? But what about all the people still trapped?"

"Get down!"

Small explosions shattered the wall behind them. Shion's ears rang and vision blurred. A purple Knightmare Frame[3] stood directly overhead. She dimly recognized it firing a SMG99AG Vector submachine gun. A hairy monster before it was steadily being reduced to a slimy puddle of goo.

The Knightmare, a large single pilot mechanized battle robot, turned and mowed down another group of beastmen who had been preparing to charge. But, its previous target, though reduced to a shapeless pulp, was not quite dead yet. Shion watched with detached fascination as the slime slowly regained its grotesque form.

The monster leapt on the Knightmare from behind, long claws rending the thick, titanium armor. She could hear the pilot's screams as the beast ripped him from his seat and carried him off into the chaos.

Everywhere she looked, a similar confrontations were taking place. Time and time again, the beastmen would rise from their near defeated state. Each time, the beastmen would rip open the cockpit and carry off the soldier inside. God knows what they did with the poor soldiers.

"Idiots," Juno said bitterly, "Poor ignorant fools. They had no idea what they were getting into…"

"What do we do?" Shion asked, ready to run whenever he was. "Do we go back?"

"Go back?" Juno sounded genuinely surprised by her sujestion. "I thought you had more courage than that! We don't go back, we have to help!"

Shion couldn't believe what she was hearing. A Knightmare was being mangled right behind Juno's left ear, the pilot screaming his defiance, and he thought she could do something about it?

"But what can we do? If the military can't handle these things then hope do we have?"

"Look," Juno said, trying to sound calm as he began to talk quickly. "The whole point of this mess is that people are being held hostage, right? So if we can free them, then it'll all be over, right?"

"No! It won't just end like that!" Shion's fear lent strength to her otherwise quiet voice. "There is _nothing_ we can do! This is suicide!"

"But There Is!" Juno's face was suffused with passion. His hawk eyes were gleamed, ready for the hunt. "If we can get into the control room, we can shut down the entire Pill system! I don't know how to shut it down, but you do! If there is even the slightest chance for us to save just one person, just ONE! Then we must try, even at the risk of our own lives! If you don't know that, then you're not the same person I thought you were."

Shion was afraid, not only of the monsters and the bullets, but of this man. This man, who she had followed so carelessly into danger. The man towered over her, his big hands capable of snapping her like a twig. His eyes glowed with a fanatic light and she could almost make it out as golden steam curl away from his body.

"But _how_?" Was all she could bring herself to say.

"Like this!" And he grabbed an iron pole, a large chunk of cement on the end. The big man swung the heavy club over his head as if it weighed nothing.

Shion backed up, instinctively taking up a defensive pose her grandfather had taught her. She knew it would be useless, she hadn't seriously trained in years. He brought the crude hammer down and her eyes squeezed shut. Shion prayed for the first time since that fight with her mother, hoping that he would somehow miss.

There was a sickening crunch as the cement thudded down. Again the blow rang out, grinding snapping sounds audible over the dying gunfire. The hammer fell three more times before it stopped and Shion slowly opened her eyes.

Juno stood over a newly made hole, four feet deep and five wide in marble floor. His body trembled with exertion, eyes blazing and jaw clenched.

"Wha-?" was all she could say.

"In." Juno grunted.

"But… huh?"

"Get in!" Juno's voice roared like thunder. "While they're still distracted with the army, girl!"

Shion scrambled down the hole and stood on a mass of wires.

"Move."

Shion scuttled to the side and Juno jumped down with her.

"Ok, you see that hole?" Shion looked and saw a small opening, almost completely covered by wires. "Follow that and you'll come up right underneath the control center. There will be a maintenance hatch that you can open when you get there."

"How can you be sure?"

"I used to play here as a kid. Just go!"

"Aren't you coming?"

"You think I'd fit in there?" Juno looked at her as if she was insane. Shion had to giggle a bit at this, the man was a mountain. There was no way he could fit through that hole. "We don't have time for this! This guy put a five hour limit to his demands. We only have half an hour left!"

Shion swallowed hard, she was terrified of going, but equally terrified of staying. Gritting her teeth, she squeezed her head and shoulders through the opening.

The space was cramped, frighteningly dark, and it was difficult to move on top of all the wires. She had gone about twenty feet, by her estimate, when bullets ripped through the passage in front of her. It took several precious moments to calm her racing heart, but she eventually moved on. She experienced several more near misses after that, but did not slow her pace. Occasionally, she was forced to shift rubble and squeeze by cave-ins.

At last she came to a spot in the tunnel lit by a small, neat slit rather than ragged bullet holes. Her hand reached up and found the tiny hinges. She was about to push up on the door when she stopped.

What was she doing? She thought to herself. This was no place for a girl like her! Who knows what could be waiting up there! She realized, suddenly, that she had been making decisions based on pure instinct ever since she had seen the man shouting in the Pill. She should never have activated the emergency repair mode without first considering where the docking station would be. She should never have left the Pill when it arrived at its destination. She should _never_ have gone running off into danger with a strange man. And now, here she was, about to risk her life, all because a total stranger lectured her about the value of life. What about her own life? Didn't that have any value?

Logically speaking, the control center would never be left unguarded. Logically, she would be killed, or captured, or worse! If she opened this hatch and stepped out there. Sentiment was fine, but was she her parents, to let her feelings override her common sense?

Sitting in that dark, cramped space with only the thinnest sliver of light to illuminate her surroundings, Shion began to cry. Short, quiet sobs that caused her body to shudder with each breath. Because… She knew. She knew what she was going to do. It wasn't the smart choice. It wasn't logical. It wasn't something that she could ever explain to a group of scientists. She couldn't even justify it to herself. But, it was something she had to do. Because, like Juno had said: If there is even the slightest chance to save one person, just one, then you have to try. Even if you had to risk of your own life.

She opened the hatch.

* * *

Usagi groaned as her eyes slowly opened. Gunshots, louder than she remembered from her one previous experience, echoed all around her. The noises only increased her massive headache. Trying to stand, she realized she was still held in a tight embrace. The white masked man was lying beneath her, body laid out on a pile of rubble. Blushing furiously, she struggled into a sitting position, his arms barely resisting her.

She sat on the man's chest, reluctant to continue moving her sore body, and looked down at his face. She had felt him purposefully position his body between her and the ground. His hat was gone, lost in that terrible plunge. She could see clearly his dark brown hair, matted thickly with blood. She leaned close to his face and felt his breath brush against her cheek.

He was alive. She sighed in relief and started to pull away when her eye caught on the thin white mask. Even though it was so small, it made him completely unrecognizable as anyone in particular. Her face still close to his, she could feel it as her hand stretched out. She knew how easy it would be to remove that mask, to figure out who this man was once and for all.

She stopped, inches away from what could be a life changing discovery. She couldn't do it. This man had just saved her life for the second time. Not only that, but his help in other matters had been invaluable. How could she violate his privacy after all he had done? Did it really matter who he was?

She had spent so much time pondering over these decisions that she didn't noticed the young man's sparkling blue eyes were open. He was looking right at her.

"If you're going to kiss me, would you mind getting off my stomach first? You're heavy."

Usagi nearly jumped off him, her face bright red. She looked anywhere but at the young man as he got unsteadily to his feet.

"On second thought, don't kiss me. I have this really odd feeling that it would be somehow… wrong." His speech pattern was different after the fall, less formal. "Where's my hat?"

His hat had been smashed under a pile of rubble, but she handed it to him anyway.

"Ah well," he said, tossing it aside, "I can always find another one. Wooah…"

The man swayed on his feet. Usagi hurried to his aid. Holding him up by one shoulder, she sat him down on a slab of upturned concrete.

"Are you all right?" Usagi asked, looking concernedly into his blue eyes.

"I'll be fine." He said, waving his hand dismissively. "But it looks like I'll have to sit the rest of this one out. I can't even find the strength to stand. You have to hurry and get to the control center. It's impossible to tell how long we've been out, but there can't be much time left."

"But what about you?"

"Go. I'll be fine. The people need you."

"But…"

"Go! Sailor Moon!"

Usagi only gave the young man one more backward glance before running into the fray.

The platoon of Knightmares had almost been completely destroyed. Usagi found herself leaping over the fallen mechs as she sliced her way through the scattered ranks of beastmen. The golden light of her attack was dim by the time she reached the big metal door, the only entrance to the glass pyramid. Smacking some ugly, reptilian mug between the eyes, she reached out to tug on the door handle.

Locked! She tugged and tugged, but the heavy door would not move. She readied her attack and tried slicing through the thick steel. But the gold disk barely scratched it. She even tried attacking the glass wall, but could make no headway against it.

Had she come this far only to be stopped by a simple locked door? She hit the hand scanner in tearful frustration. To her dismay she felt her magically enhanced hand punch through the thin screen.

All the pain of that day caught up with her and she couldn't help herself and let out a wail of despair. How could this happen? After all she had fought for, after all she had gone through to get to this point, with all those people depending on _her_ to rescue them, how could she have failed?

Tears poured out like a river and her cries echoed throughout the room. Beastmen held sensitive ears and glass display cases trembled. A crack, a very small crack appeared in the glass wall before her.

As the sound of Usagi's despair rang on, the whole pyramid began to tremble. More cracks spider webbed out and away from her voice. Chunks of glass flaked away like snow under the power of her unchecked lungs. Finally, a whole slab of glass came loose, shattering into a million pieces onto the marble floor.[5]

Usagi's cries died down and the pyramid ceased to tremble. She sniffed away her tears and looked at the newly made hole. The wall surrounding the heavy door had fallen away, leaving a field of shattered glass in its wake. She wasn't sure how she had managed to destroy the wall, but that didn't stop her from stepping through it.

* * *

Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen[4] were not the only ones to fall when the Knightmares smashed through the tower walls. With the grace given all her race, Luna had managed to land on her feet, completely unharmed by the long drop. She had done what she could for the unconscious pair, but no matter what she tried they would not rouse.

After long minutes of much tongue licking, yowling, and even some minor scratches, she gave up and turned to survey her surroundings.

The hall was the picture of chaos. The army's interference had made a dangerous situation even worse. Weapons that contained no magic or spiritual energy caused little damage to the purely magical constructs.

She had almost missed him as her eyes scanned the far wall. What had been a mere shadow gained substance as the dust settled. From this distance, all she could see was his broad shoulders and dark hair, but her instincts were rarely wrong. It was him. It had to be him. She had no clue why he would be here, but he was.

Looking back once to reassure herself that the two children had landed in a safe niche, Luna began to make her way across the room. Making use of her small size and the many piles of rubble for cover, she made her way steadily across the open room. It wasn't with nine lives alone that she had survived this long.

She'd only looked up once, to make sure the man hadn't moved, when she caught a shock of red hair disappearing beneath the rubble. But no, it couldn't be. Why would she be here? And with him of all people? She never thought they'd liked each other very much. To be fair, they got along as well as the next pair, but they were kind of opposites. What could have brought them together? As far as she knew, the girl wasn't…

She passed the next pile of rubble and stopped. She was sure that she had seen him here, but there was no one. Curious, as cats were want to be, Luna searched the spot. It wasn't long before she found the hole along with a pair of intense, tawny eyes.

She was startled that she almost yowled in surprise. Even though she had expected to find him, the sight of him standing in that hole, with those fierce eyes planted solidly on her, was enough to make any cat jump.

"You're late." He said his voice was still so deep and rumbled as he spoke. It had always reminded the cat of thunder, and still did. "I had to send her in already. You'd better hurry before something happens and she gets hurt."

Luna jumped down into the hole. Before entering the narrow passage she looked at the big human.

"We have to talk."

"Yeah," he said, not meeting her eyes. "I know."

"Wait for me, I'll find you when this is all over."

"If I can." He said noncommittally.

She decided not to press the issue further and started down the tunnel.

* * *

Shion crawled out of the cramped space and looked cautiously around. The battle was petering out beyond the glass walls, but inside all was calm. To her amazement, none of the monsters she'd seen outside were present inside the pyramid. The only one inside was the terrorist's leader. He wasn't as impressive in person, with the back of his helmet facing her and dark cape that fell past his legs.

Cape… He was wearing a cape… What was it with boys and capes? Incredibly inconvenient, they just looked stupid. But she couldn't tell her brother that. No, Kain had a whole closet full of the dumb things…

No! Now is not the time to be thinking about that. She could not let this golden opportunity go to waste!

Taking another look around, she spotted what she had come for. A large screen with a holographic interface was not ten steps away from her.

Tip-toeing as quietly as she could, Shion silently cursed the hard soled shoes of her school. One eye on the mastermind of today's events, she reached the monitor.

Shion allowed her shoulders to relax just a little bit. If she was too tense then she would make mistakes, and mistakes were the last thing she needed.

It took Shion only a moment to get acquainted with the interface before she dove into the system. Getting by already bypassed security checks, she got into the meat of the traffic control system in a matter of seconds. She almost wept at the simplicity of the man's program. A child could have come up with it. And this was what had threatened the lives of so many?

Pulling up the countdown timer, she realized only ten minutes remained before the first Pills began to crash. She rewrote the commands on the first two pods. Then she addressed the loop that would cause the next two to crash.

She later attributed it to her intense concentration while performing any task, but she heard nothing as she worked. Before she knew what was going on, someone had gripped the back of her neck.

"What are you doing here, girl." The heavy growl came from behind her as her blood ran cold.

She didn't reply. All she could do was stand and tremble.

His gloved hand moved, the pressure on her neck unbearable. He slammed her head into the large screen.

"I asked you a question." His voice playful after such violence, making his words all the more terrifying to the girl. She felt truly helpless for the first time in her life.

"What." He repeated, carefully enunciating each word. "Are. You. Doing. Here?"

Shion could only whimper and shake. She felt the cracks spreading in the glass scrape against her cheek. She didn't want to die! Why hadn't she just stayed safe in the tunnel? She was too young to be killed by this madman!

The man's free hand went to the controls and brought up her small modifications.

"You little witch!" He said, not sounding displeased, merely interested. "You've been messing with my code, haven't you?"

Shion still said nothing. She just hoped and prayed that her actions would at least save someone. She hoped someone would live, so that her death would not be meaningless.

"Well!" He almost shouted, slamming her face into the monitor for a second time. This time, sharp edges of glass caused blood to trickle down her cheek. "Have you or have you not been changing my code!"

"Y-Yes!" She stammered out.

The man laughed and readjusted his grip to hold her by her throat. He easily lifted the small girl her off her feet and spun with her on the spot.

"Well done! You're pretty smart for your age!"

"Th-Thank y-you?" She managed to gasp out, confused by his odd moods.

He laughed again. "So, girl, what do you say? Will you join my little operation here? I could use a smart girl like you. How about it? Just swear loyalty to Zero and I'll let you live." While saying this he lightly squeezed her neck, demonstrating just how easy it would be to crush the breath from her.

"N-n-no th-th-thanks, s-sir." Instinct, not logic made her respond, but her answer was no less truthful.

"No?" He sounded more curious than disappointed. "Are you sure? You'll have everything you could ever want. Complete access to all the best scientists. Free materials for your research. Endless funding and the privilege to work on whatever projects you desire. Wouldn't you like that?"

Yes, yes she would. But not from him. Not if it meant people would die because of it. What he had just talked about was what she had been aiming for all her life. It was her dreams come true! But never from him. She didn't want to be a great scientist just to invent great things. She wanted to invent great things to help people! What was the point of an invention if it did not better mankind? And this man, no matter what he might say, was not out to help mankind.

"No!" She shouted, her voice ringing out clear and strong. "I will not swear loyalty to you!" She didn't know where the strength in her voice was coming from, but she went on. "There are more important things in this word! I am here for the love of people I do not know! So that no evildoer goes unchecked! I can not be on the same side as someone like you! I am here for justice!"

Shion could feel her forehead burn white hot, but she barely even noticed as her leg kicked out, aiming for the sweet spot between his legs.

Her kick never connected, instead she her shin met a steel bar. The man moved like lightning and had caught her leg in a herculean grip. He tightened his fist and she screamed out in pain. He lifted her higher, darkness swirling in around him. The man's demented scream echoed throughout the glass chamber.

"THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS _**JUSTICE**__**!"**_

At that very moment, the glass wall shattered.

* * *

Usagi wondered why Zero was raising a small red headed girl over his head, but wasted no time in choosing sides.

"In the name of the Moon! Put her down!" Usagi shouted.

"What Moon?" Zero shouted, and then threw the girl.

Red hair fanned out behind her as the girl flew across the room. Her leg smacked sickeningly against a desk and she cart wheeled, bouncing rest of the way before thudding against the far side. Usagi watched but the small form did not move.

"You'll pay for that!" Usagi shouted, grabbing her tiara. "Moon Tiara Action!"

Zero snatched the golden energy from the air like a Frisbee. Almost lazily, he clenched his hand into a fist and the disk shattered. A simple gold tiara fell uselessly to the ground.

"Do you see now how pathetic you really are?" His voice was even darker than before, anger projecting from him in waves. "Is this all the power you can muster? Is this is what comes from believing in such pathetic ideals as _love_ and **justice**!"

Usagi had no clue what to do next. The one move that she knew was useless. But if she knew anything, it was that had to stop this man.

She charged Zero, screaming her defiance. Her fist came up, aiming at his jaw.

"Slow!" Zero roared, a counter sending her flying.

He had moved so fast! Usagi got to her feet slowly, rubbing her injured cheekbone. She knew her physical abilities were enhanced by her transformation, but he had topped that easy.

"Oh you poor girl." Zero clapped his hands as he laughed. His mocking voice echoed annoyingly in the glass chamber. "Fighting for something so long gone. Lost, Lost the Moon is Lost. Hahahaha…"

"And what about you!" Usagi shouted back. Blood flew out of her mouth. "I heard your speech!"

"Rather good wasn't it?"

"Good? It was ridiculous!" Usagi charged him again, this time trying a sliding kick.

Zero jumped absurdly high then came crashing down as Usagi was directly below him. Her head was driven into the ground. Lights popped in the growing darkness of her vision.

The man reached down and dragged her to her feet by her pigtails. His helmeted head was only inches from her face.

"You lie," the whisper containing an unfathomable menace.

She managed a smile through the pain. "The free land of Japan? Come on, no one cares about that anymore. Japan has been gone longer than the Moon."

He punched her in the gut, hard. "And who's fault is that!" He punched her again. "My dream will become a reality!" He punched her a third time. "Japan will be free and I will be its ruler! ME!"

The more he punched the pink haired senshi, the deeper the darkness that swirled around him. Usagi could feel the weight of his anger pressing her down, but she went on. She wanted to hurt him, if he was going to succeed anyway, she wanted to hurt him.

"S-S-So… W-why do you need to wear the mask? Are you that afraid?"

The twisted scream left him like the howl of a wounded animal. When he went to punch her for a fourth time, but Usagi's body did something she couldn't quite explain. Her hands moved on their own. In a single second Usagi had pressed five pressure points on his arm. She had then grabbed his elbow and twisted.

The man let go of her hair. Cradling his arm more out of surprise than real pain.

Usagi hit the floor and her battered body gave a gasp of pain. Her vision had begun to blur and she was getting cold. Something gleamed out of the corner of her eye.

* * *

Luna struggled with the hatch at the end of the tunnel but eventually the cat managed to open it. She had watched as the man called Zero grabbed the redheaded girl. She had seen as the girl defied him, shouting words that echoed the Senshi creed. What was more, she had seen the symbol that burn brightly on her forehead just before she attacked the man.

Now, Luna walked slowly to where the girl lay floor, her crumpled body unmoving. One of her legs had twisted so far in its socket that it now faced in the opposite direction.

Moving closer still, she saw the girl was not completely motionless. Tears ran down her bloody cheek.

"Does it hurt badly?" Luna asked, even though she knew the answer.

"YES!" came the sob of reply.

"Is that why you cry?"

"NO!"

"Then why?"

"BECAUSE, ALL THOSE PEOPLE ARE GONNA DIE! AND THERE'S NOTHING EITHER I OR SAILOR MOON CAN DO ABOUT IT!"

"And if you could change that, would you?"

"YES!"

"Even though you may never go back to your old life?"

"OF COURSE!"

"Then here, take this and repeat after me: Mercury Power, Make Up!"

* * *

Usagi grasped the gold circlet as she realized something. It wasn't the pain that had clouded her vision. It was _fog_! Ice cold fog had filled the room, blurring the man not two feet in front of her.

Raising the golden bit of jewelry, she changed it into the disk of golden light. Even through the fog she could see the man's back was to her. In a very hoarse whisper, she called out her attack, hoping that he would not turn and see in the few seconds it would take for her attack to reach him.

"m-m-moon… t-tiara… action!"

The disk shot from her hand. The man did not turn, and she knew her attack would hit home. But, in that very brief moment that it took for the gold disk to travel across the few feet between her and the dark man, a woman's voice cried out in anguished fear.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooo!"

All Usagi saw was long green hair and a white gown before the woman disappeared along with the man who had once again turned a normal day into a nightmare.

Usagi stood, all fight left her body the moment she had seen the black cape vanish. But she could not rest yet. He would be back, but first she had to make sure the passengers in the Pills were safe.

She made her painful way over to the big monitor, just visible through the thinning fog. Standing in front of the screen was a small, red-haired girl. She was wearing a skimpy sailor style school uniform. The outfit was a perfect mirror of Usagi's. Except, instead of red accents, the girl's uniform was done all in blue.

"Who? Who are you?"

"She is the Sailor Suited Defender of Love and Justice, Sailor Mercury!"

The voice that said this didn't come from the girl but was familiar. Usagi turned in a full circle before remembering to look down.

"Luna! How did you get here?"

"Hmph! I was here the whole time, you just didn't notice."

"But Lunaaa!" She said, not too exhausted not to whine at her cat. "Who is she?"

"I told you! She is Sailor Mercury, the guardian of mercury and descended from their royal line!"

"You mean she's royalty?" Usagi said groggily. The only talk of monarchies these days were tales from the outer reaches of the Solar System.

"Don't be silly," Luna said tartly. "You're no different than her."

She frowned and was about to ask more questions of her illusive cat, when a new voice broke in.

"That should put things back to normal." The girl had finally stopped what she was doing at the consol and turned to look at Usagi, holding out her hand. "I'm Shion Blueriver, I hope we can work together from now on."

Usagi was a little surprised to see the girl was wearing glasses, but took her hand and smiled sweetly.

"I'm Usagi Chiba, I hope so too." It would be nice to have more friends, because Zero would be back.

* * *

As Sailor Moon and the newly minted Sailor Mercury made their departure, Luna hung back. This would be a waste of time if he had left, but she hoped that he had stuck around.

Approaching the spot where he had last stood, Luna looked up into his unmistakable, brown-gold eyes. They were now fixed on her princess, quickly fading from sight.

"Hello, Ju-"

"Luna." The man's curt greeting cut off her own, but it was enough.

"How long?" She asked him warily.

"About fifteen years." She couldn't make out any emotion in his reply, but she knew that it was a long time to wait alone.

"And, what of-"

"She's fine."

This time Luna just waited, they had all been affected differently by that night. And, who knew how he had changed in those fifteen years.

"I've done what I could," he continued, "to prepare her."

Luna nodded, but remained silent.

"You know how young she was, I'm not sure she'll be of much use to you."

"It is enough to know you've been taking care of her." She said, trying to give some comfort to the man.

He nodded and looked off into the distance.

"Shit." His voice was quite now, almost as if he was talking only to himself. "It's all gone to hell, hasn't it?"

"There is still hope."

"Hope? HOPE!" His voice boomed and echoed off the walls, compounding the rage and despair contained in it a thousand times over. "Whatever hope we had died seven _thousand_ years ago! What hope do we have now?"

She wished she could tell him. She wished she could give him the answers he wanted to hear. But she couldn't, she just couldn't…

"You know," he said, a little calmer than before, "before I knew, I used to love this place. I'd spend my weekends under the trees, or with my back up against the wall, just… enjoying the world around me." He smiled reminiscently at the memory, and Luna could just see him as a young boy, basking in the afternoon sun. "Now though," and like that the happy expression was gone. "Every time I look around, all I see are phantoms. This place is full of them. Ghosts from a past life, people who I've never really seen alive before, faces that won't stay buried. And every time I see them, I ask myself: Why? Why am I not among them? What made me so much better than them that I am here and they remained behind?"

It looked for a moment as if those fierce golden eyes would dissolve under a wash of tears. But then, they flashed brilliantly as he slammed his fist into the wall behind him.

"I'll be there, if you need me." He said as he turned to walk away. "I'll keep in touch, if I can. It's nice to see old faces… Living, that is."

* * *

[1] Interesting Fact: _Guiding Light_ is the longest running soap opera on record.

[2] Japanese Translation: 'Bara' means 'Rose' in Japanese.

[3] Knightmare Frames are courtesy of Code Geas. I took a couple of other things from this series, if you hadn't noticed.

[4] Japanese Translation: 'Kamen' means 'Mask', for those few of you who don't already know.

[5] One of the long forgotten powers of Sailor Moon, after the first episode it was never used again.

* * *

Right, so this is version two. Not as bad as chapter one, I still messed with the phrasing of almost every sentence. Now that I read through it, I realize I should have split this into two chapters. Put in a mid level boss and break things up a bit. Ah well, a thought for next time, eh?


	3. Chapter 3

Edited 6/30/2011

The Third Rising: The unofficial continuation of Destiny's Child

By: Crewman R

Original Story By: Fire

Here's chapter 3. It has been a while since my last post. I wanted to do monthly updates but dreams often yield to reality. But fear not, this story will continue!

You might have noticed that I stole even more stuff in the last chapter than in my first. Just so you know I'll be stealing even more as the story progresses. I will, however, give credit where credit is due. You already know, this is a crossover primarily between Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon but I've also brought some things in from Code Geass and Xenosaga as well as another series some of you might have spotted. All rights belong to the creators of those series, their usage here being strictly illegal. But I can not let such petty concerns deter me! I couldn't write this story any other way.

* * *

Chapter Three:

Monday, August 25th, 7059 A.C.E. (After Crystal Era)

She was running along the roofs. The Red Sun, setting slowly behind her, stained the sky with its bitter light that prolonged the day's death. Over head, Titan was curved and thin like the blade of a sickle. And, due to the Red Sun's late falling, Earth's sister planet seemed as though stained with blood.

Her orange skirt flared out as she leapt from the roof of one skyscraper to the next. The police radio on her hip suddenly let out a burst of static as voices broke the silence of the night.

"He's heading for the window! Stop him!"

"Grah! Our weapons aren't working; he must be one of those creatures!"

"Try to capture it! We can't let it get away! Gwahargh!"

A window shattered. The black hover-bike shot from the building several stories below her. A single, dark figure astride it.

Without hesitation, she jumped from the roof of the building. Wind whipped the hair out of her face as she plummeted five, ten, twenty stories down. The hover-bike pitched under the impact as she landed, unharmed, onto the large crate strapped on its back.

The driver turned quickly in his seat, the dark visor of his helmet facing her. Her foot lashed out, the orange tip of her shoe cracking his head back. The resulting snap in was audible even over the roar of the bike's engine. Neck now broken, head lolling sickeningly to one side, what would have killed a human barely phased this creature.

Newly formed claws slashed out for her legs, but she hadn't expected the battle to end so simply. The orange skirted girl jumped in the air and gave the creature's helmet another two sharp kicks. This time the black helmet (meant to protect riders from a head on collision at ninety miles per hour) shattered like china.

Helmet gone, the driver's face was revolting. Lit by the meager traces of red light, the face was a mass of hair and fangs. Two beady, red eyes glared menacingly at her from within their deep set sockets.

A look of disgust now marring the pretty warrior's face, she sent another airborne kick into the creature's chest. The beastman's body rocked backwards and knocked into the controls. The bike swerved wildly while the blonde girl was still airborne. It shot from beneath her, her fingers just caught the edge of the crate as her legs were left to dangle in the dark expanse of the night. She felt a cold sweat bead her brow and she couldn't avoid looking down. Even her magically enhanced body would not survive a fall from such a height.

The creature began to crawl over the crate, great ugly snout sniffing and beady red eyes searching to see if his cute assailant had finally fallen to her doom. So preoccupied was this beast, that it failed to notice the bike was now hurtling toward the nearest building. It had just seen a strand of long, blond hair flutter out from behind the crate, when the bike smashed through a pane of glass.

The Senshi felt her fingers leave the raised edge of the box as her residual momentum sent her flying into the building. She bounced off the ceiling and went straight through the plaster of the far wall before making contact with the floor and skidding to a halt by a second wall.

She got unsteadily to her feet as the cries of a small child reached her ears. She was in a large banquet hall, vaulted ceiling so high over head that the ornate carvings at its peak were hardly visible. In her hand she held a small spoon. 'Is this real silver?' was her brief thought before her eyes moved away from the small object and her mind turned to different matters.

She was trying to coax a small child to eat, making faces and talking in that way people do with the extremely young or extremely stupid.

"C'mon open wide," she said, "that's it. Ahhh, just say ah for me, ok?" The little brat wasn't having any of it. Before she could stop him, he tipped his plate over and food spilled all over her elegant gown.

A peel of laughter rang out from behind her. The sound was sweet and melodious, a sound that could have softened even the hardest of hearts. A young woman with long blond hair stepped into the hall, walking so delicately that her heels made not sound on the stunning mosaic of the floor.

'She is so beautiful,' the girl thought to herself, just as she did every time she saw this woman. 'And people say we look alike? Never. She is the only one who could ever possess such beauty, such grace and elegance. Just look at her, my beauty shines like a candle while she is as radiant as the Sun.'

She managed to frown at this paragon of grace and beauty as she whined, "Why won't he eat? I'm doing everything the same way you do!"

The woman only smiled then took the spoon gently from her. "Now say ah for mummy." She said, her voice as gentle as clouds and as sweet as honey. The child smiled, then obediently opened his mouth to let the woman slip the food in. "See? That wasn't so hard now was it?"

"But I tried that!" She said, perturbed by the child's easy obedience towards this woman.

"Well," the woman said, patiently picking the fallen food up off the floor, revealing a glorious pattern of tiles that showed every petal of a rose in marvelous detail, "he is your brother after all. It's his job to give you a hard time…"

The orange skirted warrior wrenched herself from the memory just in time. The beastman threw aside the rubble covering him and charged. The only thing she had time to do was dive out of the way as its hairy bulk careened through the wall she had been resting against. She rolled to her feet as a hairy snout with shards of glass sticking out at odd angles poked back out from the newly made hole.

She stood for a moment, dazed. She had a brother. She had a brother! Was he still alive out there? Was he waiting for her to find him? Would he recognize her if she did? And how would she know it was him?

The creature, once human in form, was now all animal. The beast took its time circling this deceptively frail looking young girl. Then stopped. All the hairs on its back quivered and she could see a cruel smile spread across one side of its ugly face. The yellow fangs glittered evilly as it reared to its hind legs and put its fore-claws into a small, unbroken bed, lying in the middle of the room. Slowly, almost tenderly, it drew out of the bed a small, dark form.

Then she realized something. Something she should have realized before now. The child's cries she had heard had not faded with her dream.

The large, hairy paws lifted the now writhing object up to its snout. The yellow fangs parted as saliva dripped to the floor.

Her vision went red as she shouted the attack she had saved for the finishing blow.

"CRESCENT BEAM!"

The thin yellow beam shot from her finger, slicing through the creature's forelegs. The arms holding the dark bundle separated from its body. Its appendages turned to dust as they fell leaving no cushion between the screaming bundle and the hard floor.

She dove across the room, sliding the last few feet like a baseball player coming into home plate. She thanked every being she could think of for her magically enhanced speed; for it was only because of this that she managed to catch the small, wailing child before its head hit the ground.

Meanwhile, the beast, unable to regenerate limbs severed by magic, used the girl's distraction to turn and flee. It reverted to its human form as it reached the smashed window. Converting his feet into hands, it began to clamber on top of the still floating wreck of the hover-bike.

Taking the time to gently set the child back in its crib, the sailor suited avenger charged the beastman. She was _not_ going to let this one escape. The magic responded to her fierce determination and she caught the monster just as he was climbing into the seat. Her shoulder slammed into its chest. The force of her charge knocked the beastman flying, but his transformed feet now had greater grip and he clung to the edge of the smashed window. Teetering on the edge, it flailed its small stumps of arms in a desperate attempt to regain balance.

Her orange shoes clacked across the floor as she walked steadily up to the unbalanced figure. Its face was now that of a handsome man with blond hair and panicking, blue eyes. She could see the plea behind those eyes and stretched out her hand. In the background, the child let out a small whimper. Suddenly the young girl's face hardened. Emotion swept across her. Dark, terrible and raging hot, the feeling gripped her soul. She looked one last time into his wide, blue eyes and pushed.

The man's face showed an instance of pure terror as his body wavered for a moment on the edge. Then, slowly, slowly it fell backwards into the blood red of the half-night. Howls of anger echoed off the buildings as it plummeted to an end even a beastman could not come back from.

The orange skirted defender of the innocent left the bike with its crate of stolen goods floating by the building from which it had originally flown. She then made her silent departure into the night.

* * *

Things were looking up for Usagi as she awoke to the rough licking of her cat's tongue.

"Good morning Luna." She said sleepily.

"Good morning Usagi-chan." Her cat replied. Once she would have denied that any real cat could speak, but now it was a long accepted fact.

She blinked slowly, warm and cozy beneath her sheets. It was so nice being able to relax like this. She had been out every night to deal with Zero's minions for the last two weeks. Ever since she had bested him for the second time, Zero had set his underlings to making as much chaos as possible. But, for some reason, last night had been blissfully quiet.

Of course, without their dreaded master, the beastmen were nothing in front of the Sailor Senshi. Added to that, Shion had hacked into the police computers. She could now use it to tell them exactly where and when an attack had occurred.

While they called them "attacks", they were more like small raids or burglaries. For some reason, Zero had directed his beastmen to steal all manner of things, from ancient artifacts to the latest inventions. He even had them steal common place items from people's homes. One odd night, a beastman had smashed into that _boy_ Katan's house. It had then made off with his toothbrush. What the Black Knights wanted with a hardly used toothbrush was anyone's guess. But, she had seen the shadowy figure fleeing and could not deny the truth of the event.

She rinsed her own pink, Hello Hamster toothbrush then set it in the cup on her sink. Soon after, she was riding the pill on her way to Furinkan High. Watching levels of the skyscraper flashing past, content after a night of good sleep, she was startled to feel a sharp tug on her left pigtail.

"Ouch!" She yelped, and turned to see the person she wished would find a different pill to ride for once.

"Hey there, bubblegum." Katan said cheerfully. The incident with the beastman only seemed to have made him more annoying rather than less and he had gotten into the habit of tugging on her hair when she least expected it.

He grinned cockily at her and continued, "Did something happen over the weekend to make you so cheerful? Did you finally find a poor, colorblind boy who will go out with you?"

She scowled at him. Or at least she tried to scowl at him. Her face just wasn't made for any sort of fierce expressions and it ended up as a cute half-pout half-frown. "That joke is getting really old." She said. "Besides lots of girls are dying their hair this color now of days."

"Pshaw," he said, turning his nose up and taking a lofty tone. "They are only doing it to copy Sailor Moon. I bet she only uses that color to hide her identity. I mean, it's the perfect disguise. People spend so much time looking at that hair so no one has ever gotten a good look at her face. That's the only reason the police haven't figured out who she is yet."

Usagi couldn't help smiling to herself at this. She had overheard Katan talking to a few of his friends and knew for a fact that he was a huge fan of Sailor Moon. He would tell anyone who would listen that he expected "great things" of Sailor Moon. Big talk for someone who had only caught the replays of the battles.

They had reached the school so Usagi and Katan stepped out of the capsule. Usagi spotted the red hair of her friend Shion, the only other Sailor Senshi besides her and the smartest girl she had ever met. Hurriedly ditching Katan, she went to give her friend a cheerful greeting.

Shion smiled a weary smile at her pink haired compatriot. The dark bags beneath her eyes were only magnified by the thick glasses on her nose. The bookish girl hadn't even tried to cover them up with a little makeup.

"What's wrong!" Usagi cried, then lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "I would have thought you'd have gotten some sleep after last night…"

Shion smiled her reserved smile. "About that, Usagi, there is something we need to talk about…"

The bell rang and cut the quiet girl off before she could say any more and the two headed off for class.

Before she entered her classroom Usagi turned and asked, "What was it you were about to say before?"

Shion grimaced wearily and shook her head. "Later, we can talk at lunch."

Usagi quickly forgot her friend's cryptic comments as the class began. She had never been a poor student, but was starting to fall behind because of all her "volunteer work" of late. Now, she was trying to pay twice as much attention in order to make up for classes spent half asleep.

The bell rang for lunch. So absorbed was she in trying to puzzle out the math equation her teacher had been discussing, that she barely even looked at her friend when she sat at their customary table.

"Usagi," Shion said, meekly attempting to break into the other girl's thoughts. "There's really something I have to tell you."

"Hmm?" Usagi mumbled through a mouthful of food.

"Usagi, it's about last night. There was-"

Just then a shriek echoed across the lunch room. Usagi jumped to her feet instantly, hand going to the gold disk affixed to the bow on her uniform.

* * *

"Usagiii-chan!" Shrieking, Lina jumped her pink-haired, rabbit-eared, best friend ever!

The poor girl was nearly knocked to the ground by Lina's enthusiastic embrace. Usagi was so surprised, in fact, that she almost didn't even recognize her childhood friend through the blond haze in front of her eyes. "L-Lina-chan? Is that you?"

Lina backed away a bit only to be similarly engulfed by a squealing Usagi. Laughing, and getting a mouthful of pink for hair in the bargain, she returned her friend's embrace.

"C-cough, phpt, cough… Why didn't you tell me you were back on Earth!" Lina said, rather reproachfully, to her friend. It really was quite a serious oversight.

"I-I thought you knew…" Usagi's eyes became huge and wet, the way they did when she was trying not to cry. "Your mom was the one who reassigned Daddy back hear so…"

Lina huffed dismissively and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Well, I'll just have to have a word with her! Mummy wants me to take over the business, but won't tell me when she reassigns my best friend's Dad? Nonsense!"

"But what about you?" Usagi broke in, "I've been here for almost three whole weeks already and haven't seen you anywhere."

That sounded a bit like an accusation to Lina, but she'd let it slide. This was her best friend and all. "Well, I had been attending here as an eighth grader but then Mummy decided to hire tutor for me so I could spend more time around the business. And just as luck would have it, not a month of school has gone by of her second year, and the silly woman runs off with one of those Crystal Queen fanatics. Mummy was furious and Papa was beside himself with laughter, but in the end they had to send me back here until they could find another tutor."

"Th-Then you're not staying?" Usagi's eyes had gone all big and watery again and she gripped Lina's hands tightly in her own.

Sighing, Lina bent forward and flicked her best friend on the forehead. "Of course I'm staying, dum-dum. Now that I know you're here, I'll just have to tell Mummy to call the search off. I'm sure Papa will back me up."

"O-ok…" Usagi's eyes were still watery but Lina knew her friend wasn't going to start the waterworks with just this. And a good thing too, Usagi may not cry that often, but when she did, you were likely to need your canoe afterwards.

With their reunion now over, Lina finally noticed a quiet, timid girl with red hair and an old fashion pair of spectacles (something only worn by the really old or those too poor to afford eye surgery). "If you're done gawping at us could you move along? This is a privet reunion not a spectacle for poor people's amusement."

"Lina-chan! How could you say something like that?" Her friend looked genuinely shocked! But then, her family wasn't as rich or famous as Lina's. If this whole incident wasn't on the internet by the time the last bell had rung, then her name wasn't Lina Lovegood!

"Well?" Lina said, glowering at the red head, who still hadn't moved despite looking more timid than ever.

"Oh… Stop it Lina-chan, she's my friend and you're scaring her!" Lina only glared more fiercely at the girl with this news. How dare this poor little mouse become friends with _her _Usagi? But still, the shy creature did not back down.

'She may be as meek as a lamb,' Lina thought, 'but there's a spine buried in there somewhere.'

"Liinaaaa!" Her friend's plaintive whine finally made her look back at Usagi, who was starting to get that 'You better stop it, or else!' expression, that was far too cute to ever be taken seriously.

"Oh… Fine then," she relented, "if she's a friend of yours then she's a friend of mine." Lina didn't really mean this, but didn't want to upset her friend so soon after meeting her again. She held out her hand politely and smiled her brightest television smile at the girl. "My name is Lina Lovegood; I hope we can become good friends."

The girl's tentative hand took her own and she spoke in a voice so soft it could hardly be heard. "I'm Penelope Blueriver, it is very nice meeting you Ms. Lovegood."

Lina just smiled indulgently at the girl before turning back to her friend. "Well, I better get going, don't want to miss class if I'm attending this year after all. Let's meet up after school and I'll give you my new phone number, kay?"

With that, she turned on her heel and left her friend standing next to the red-headed mouse. She silently resolved to check every detail on this 'Shion Blueriver', she wasn't about to have her best friend (and herself by extension) hanging around with some low born guttersnipe!

* * *

The silence after Lina left was long and awkward. As Usagi would have known, this happened a lot whenever the blonde left a room. Stunningly pretty, Lina had a tendency to dominate every room she was in.

In Shion's case, however, the silence held a deeper meaning. Lina's attitude towards her had been everything she had come to expect from the students of this school. It was hard for her to believe that the kind-hearted Usagi was friends with such a girl. Of course, Usagi's family would have to be fairly well off themselves, so it should come as no surprise that she had a few rich friends.

Shion hated being poor. She hated having to wear these stupid glasses all the time. She hated being looked down on by people who didn't even have two brain cells to rub together.

Eventually, the noise from the rest of the cafeteria filtered in to break the two girls' silent reveries. A quick check of watches told them how little time they had left. They both managed to get something in their bellies before the bell rang and they had to return to class. It wasn't until school was over that Shion tried to engage Usagi once more.

"Usagi," Shion said meekly, walking slowly beside her friend, "about what I was going to say at lunch, last night something strange happened. I think-"

"Oh look!" Usagi said excitedly. "Lina-chan is waving at us, let's go over and say hi. I can't believe she's going to be going to my same school again, can you?"

Usagi took her red-headed friend's hand and hurriedly tugged her towards the gate where stood the tall, elegant blonde. She was waving serenely at them, with a not too large, not too small smile on her face. Shion could have sworn the whole gesture was practiced, but the twinkle in her eye seemed genuine enough.

"Heeeey, Usagi-chan!" Lina said cheerfully, "I was hoping to catch you before you left!" The blond's gaze drifted over Shion for the briefest moment before flicking back to the pink haired girl. Shion recognized the gesture as both acknowledgement and dismissal while using the least energy possible. The gesture stung her, was her presence worth so little notice? "I was just planning to do some shopping, you want to come?"

Usagi was literally bouncing, she was so excited. "Of course I want to come, Lina-chan! How long has it been since the last time? Where do you want to go? I'll just call my mom and tell her I'll be coming home a bit late."

Shion sighed inwardly. Giving her friend's hand a small squeeze and a light tug, she tried in vain to get the pink haired girl's attention. They didn't have time for this sort of thing with monsters loose in Tokyo.

"Oh, goodie!" Lina said, clapping her hands together, eyes glittering. "It'll be just like old times then. I figured we would go to Fox Hall Road. You know, the place where I got you your first earrings and we saw the pantomime of the about the lovers who were reborn into the same body. You can even bring Ms. Blueriver, if you want."

"Really! Oh Lina-chan you're the greatest!" Usagi cried and hugged the blond. Turning back to Shion she said, "You will come, won't you? It'll be lots of fun. Lina's the best, you'll see."

Shion could feel herself wince at Usagi's innocent invitation. Fox Hall Road was one of the most expensive shopping districts in the entire Tokyo Metropolitan Area. A single hotdog there would cost more than Shion's parents could make in a year. Not that Usagi would realize that, but the smug look on Lina's face told her that someone did.

"I-I'm sorry Usagi, I really can't. But I have something really important I have to tell you…" Shion could feel her own voice wither under Lina's haughty gaze. She doubted anyone could hear anything more than her refusal.

Usagi, oblivious to everything but her long lost friend, bid Shion a cheerful farewell as they set off towards Lina's personal hovercraft.

Shion just stood there for a while, abandoned in the school's gateway, staring after her friend and comrade in arms. She wanted to call after the Usagi's pink head as it disappeared into the black vehicle, but couldn't work up the courage.

She silently chided herself at not being firmer with the sometimes flighty girl as she hurriedly jumped onto her pill . They had needed to talk and now it would have to wait. But with attacks happening every night, could they really afford wait?

Shion brooded all the way home. All last night she had stayed up, tracking down the cause of the anomaly. She had even made especially sure not to bother Usagi, so she could get some sleep. Then she got to school and waited fifteen minutes at the gate with everyone staring at her as they passed. But when Usagi arrived would she even listen? No! First it was time to go to class, then she was eating, then that Lovegood girl showed up. So what if Shion was a little bit poor? So what if those two had known each other from childhood? None of that was any excuse to be rude, was it? Why were rich people always so petty? Why did they have to go out of their way to exclude her, to look down on her? She was smarter than all of them put together!

Shion's mind still dwelled on these things as she trudged through the door of the store that doubled as her house. Past her mother, who greeted her so cheerfully it hurt. Went up the stairs to the smallest bedroom in the house, which was only a slight bit roomier now her brother no longer shared it with her. Then, flopped onto her small twin bed, passed down from her great uncle who had actually died in that same bed. Bitten by a spider in his sleep, it was a long standing fear of hers that the spider still hid somewhere in the mattress.

Sighing, she took out a small, teal pencil case and set it on the TV tray she used as a desk. Flipping it open revealed that the lid had been installed with a highly advanced holopad, while the bottom half contained numerous small buttons and keys.

This was the Mercury Computer, the most advanced supercomputer Shion had ever heard of, and it fit in her pocket. This thing made her 59 year old DILL 7000 look like rock in comparison. She had used the Mercury Computer to hack the police headquarters' in less than fifteen minutes.

Activating the holo screen, she skimmed the police records. The computer should warn her whenever something strange happens, but she could sometimes manage to catch things before they became serious. Not that she expected much, it was a little early in the day for the Black Knights to be out. They preferred late evening and nighttime. After all the normal businesses were all closed down.

Shion scrolled down the list without finding anything interesting. Some police cars were missing and a few workers had mysterious injuries, but none of that was especially unusual. Leaving the endless reports of petty thefts, family disputes, and mindless violence, Shion switched over to another one of her projects. It was a website for the Sailor Senshi. A place where they could prove their good intentions as allies of justice and receive information on strange crimes and odd incidents. But after a few minutes she realized that there really wasn't anything more to be done with it. The sight could've been activated any time and hosted with all the security of the Mercury Computer backing it up.

Usagi had been all for the idea once she heard about it, but Luna had put her foot down. "Senshi do not advertise themselves!" Luna had said. And, the submissive person that she was, Shion had decided to cancel the project.

Sighing once more, she closed out of the webpage. Bored, and tense with emotion she went to Ping and typed in the name 'Lina Lovegood'. Then clicked search.

Shion rocked back onto bed, stunned. The number of results was over nine thousand! "There must be something wrong with my scanner, I mean computer!" she almost shouted out loud.

Scrolling down the list, she passed by several entries in Timer and Peoplez magazines, as well as Starlet and shows like The Viewed. Eventually, she reached a _reliable_ source of information and opened the Wickedpedia page dedicated to the girl.

As she read, Shion realized just why the girl was so arrogant, and marveled at the fact that Usagi even knew such a person. Not that any of it made the girl's actions any better, but it did explain a few things.

Fifteen years old, Shion read, Lina Lovegood is the much celebrated daughter of two of the world's most famous and influential people. Her mother is the C.E.O. of Orbis Enterprises, the only major company besides the Tolar Transport Company to survive the end of the Crystal Era. Tolar having been bought out recently by Vector Industries, made Orbis the oldest Enterprise in existence. They have hand in nearly every industry on the planet and several significant interests off world. Although only a rumor, Orbis is said to control all the politics in Tokyo and has a good deal of clout with the world government.

Her father, on the other hand, is a famous throughout the solar system. He is widely considered the greatest actor of the seventy-first century. It is also been suggested on many occasions that he holds a keen interest in politics. His most recent film, _Ten Thousand Days_, produced a record breaking thirteen trillion dollars in revenue. It is rumored that his next film will feature his daughter as the costar. It is speculated that they will be doing a recreation of _Going on Without You_. A classic tale that dates back to the Crystal Era. It tells of a man cursed to go on living as all those he loves die around him.

Shion was just beginning to read about a supposed sex scandal between this teen idol and her thirty year old teacher, when an alarm rang out from her computer.

* * *

Usagi placed another spoonful of the world's best ice-cream into her mouth as she listened to her friend talk.

"So this fat old man walks up to me and practically starts breathing down my neck. The stench was horrible; I think he'd been drinking. Anyway, he says to me, he says to me something like, 'Now Lina, I know your parents wouldn't be happy if they saw these grades.' Kinda leering at me as he says it, the smarmy prick. Then he goes on to say, 'But I'm sure if we work together we can bring them up. Why don't you come by this address and we'll see what we can do.' Then this guy winks at me and hands me a card." Lina took a small break here to take a delicate bite out of her cake. "So, I look at the thing and it's some business card for a love hotel! Can you believe it? The card had some half naked woman and a neon pink heart drawn all over it. Well… I don't need to tell you that I was a bit shocked. I mean, the man was a creep and all, no doubts there, but to think he was stupid enough to think he could blackmail me into sleeping with him? Ridiculous!"

Usagi's eyes were wide now, but she still managed to put a large helping of ice-cream into her mouth before asking. "So what did you do?"

"Well," Lina said, relishing her tale, "Little did he know that I'd been practicing a bit of martial arts, preparing myself for just such an occasion. First I kicked the paunchy jerk in the groin, and he falls down, howling and swearing. Then, once he was on the ground, I grab his arm, ready to break it, and put my foot on his balding little head. By this time he had stopped screaming and was just moaning and whimpering, but I just bent over a little and say to him, I say to him, 'Now look here you fat, disgusting little man, not only am I not going to have sex with you, but if I don't get an A on that test, then I'm going to rat you out to every teacher in this school. Do we understand each other?' The week idiot just nods and whimpers at me. I mean how pathetic was that, a grown man, taken down by a thirteen year old girl."

"So that's it?" Usagi asked, spoon halfway to her bowl. "You never told anyone? He can't still be teaching."

"Of course I didn't tell anyone!" Lina said, looking offended. "At least, not until my grades came in. Then I went straight to the principle and told her the whole thing."

"So is he in jail now?" Usagi asked, relieved that the man hadn't gotten away with what he had tried to do.

"Well…" Lina now sounded a bit reluctant as she ate some more of her cake. "There wasn't really much that could've been done, we had no real evidence after all."

"They still let him teach after that?"

"No, of course not, the principle fired him right away, but they couldn't charge him on anything."

"So where is he now?"

Lina's smile was very thin as she said, "No one really knows. You see, he tried to start some very nasty rumors about me after I got him fired. He was all set to go on some talk show and everything, but he, uh… never showed up."

Usagi swallowed the gobbet of ice-cream in her mouth before staring at a small picture of a horse on the table. Her father had once warned her never to offend the Lovegoods. The fact was, strange things happened to people who got on their bad side.

"So," Lina said, sensing a change in subject was in order. "What was it like living on Titan? I've only been to a couple of their resorts, but you here all sorts of rumors about the colonialists."

Usagi made a face. "I don't know where those rumors got started. Everyone was perfectly nice. People there don't go around waving guns about and I never once saw a mutant. True, people are a bit rowdier there, but no one really minds since there is so much more space. But, but there do seem to be a lot more blind people there. It's hereditary, from the first settlers, or so they told us in class. And, there was this one girl who everyone said was a psychic. She would push pencils across her desk without touching them."

"Really?" Lina said, her expression was of disinterest, but Usagi saw the tell tale glint in her eye that said she wanted to know more. "I had heard of such people, but I've never actually met one. What was she like?"

"She was a really kind person." Usagi said earnestly. "I was so sad my first day there. She came out to greet me on the playground, a little doll in her hand. She set it on the ground in front of her then stared at it for a while, frowning. Just as I was about to look away, it jumps off the ground and does the funniest little dance you ever saw."

Lina couldn't help it as a giggle escaped, "That's the oddest thing I ever heard! But are you sure she wasn't pulling your leg? I mean, there wasn't some robotic frame inside the doll, was there?"

"No! Of course not! She fainted right after and I had to carry her to the nurse's office. I, I asked her about it when she woke up and she said the technique had been passed down by her family. The only problem was that it put a lot of strain on the user's mind, which is why she fainted. But, she said it was worth it to see me smile."

Lina was looking out the window, her chin resting lightly on her hand. "Did you know the girl well then?"

Usagi bobbed her head. "Yeah, it was very sad when we had to say goodbye. But she and her family put on a show for me before we left. A miniature play, where they moved all the little dolls about by thought. The play was a kind of tragedy, about a young boy who falls in love with a girl who is destined to die in order to keep nature in balance. He tries so hard to save her and to make her happy, but... but she still has to die in the end."

Usagi stirred the melted dregs of her ice-cream. The memory was a sad one and brought back all sorts of emotion. She had cried and cried when the play had finished. She had hugged her friend and begged forgiveness for having to leave. Her friend had hugged her and told her it was ok, that everyone parted ways sometimes. Usagi had written the girl since, but what she could she write about that didn't have to do with being Sailor Moon?

Lina, still gazing out the widow said, "Sounds like you two were really good friends."

"Uh-huh, but there were a lot of good people there. They were all very open and understanding."

Lina glanced at her friend, a wry smile on her lip. "And we Earthlings aren't?"

Usagi looked shocked, "No! Not at all! That's not how I meant it, Lina-chan!"

The blond reply was cold, "So how _did_ you mean it?"

Usagi fidgeted uncomfortably. "Well… it's just that… until I met Shion, no one seemed to want to be my friend. Everyone was so cold and distant, and some even seem to enjoy tormenting me…" She scowled cutely as she thought about a certain boy. "I didn't have any friends and all this strange stuff has been happening lately. It's just been really hard. You were my only real friend when I was little and I didn't know where you had gone… That's it, that's all I meant."

Usagi sniffled, but she would not cry. She hated girls who cried all the time, always exaggerating their problems.

She felt an arm go around her shoulder in a soft squeeze. "Hey… it's ok." Said the warm voice of her childhood friend. "I'm here now, and we'll be the best of friends, just like old times."

Usagi sniffled a few more times before she finally wiped her eyes and smiled at her friend.

"Better now?" Lina asked, giving her another small squeeze.

Usagi only nodded, pink rabbit ears bouncing.

"Good, let's get you another bowl of ice-cream. Then you can tell me all about this Shion girl."

Usagi was halfway through this second bowl of ice-cream when her watch began to beep. Almost dropping her spoon, Usagi looked down at the accessory. Sailor Mercury's worried face had replaced the normal display of the time. Slapping her hand over the watch, she looked about nervously, thinking of what she could do next.

"Oh that's cute," Lina said, looking at the watch. "Where'd you get it? I think I've seen something like it before…"

But Usagi wasn't listening. She had jumped to her feet and was hurriedly picking up her bags from their shopping expedition.

"Whoa there," Lina said, placing a restraining hand on Usagi's arm. "What's the hurry? You haven't even finished your ice-cream yet."

"Sorry, Lina-chan," Usagi said, fidgeting nervously. "But I forgot that I really need to do something. It's really important, and that timer means I'm already late."

"Ok, ok," Lina said, trying to placate her over excited friend. "But just wait a moment and I'll get George to drive us there, I'm sure it would be faster than a Pill."

"No!" Usagi almost shouted. "I mean… No thanks Lina-chan, it's not exactly close and I'm afraid I couldn't give directions. Just, just stay here and finish your cake, I'm sure I can make it on my own."

Usagi stared at the blond heiress pleadingly, eyes big and round, her lower lip trembling.

Lina was ready to argue some more, but then something inside her bent and she relented. "Oh all right then, but you owe me for this. I had the whole rest of the evening planned and everything."

The moment Lina had consented, Usagi hugged her and was out the door before the girl could finish clearing the pink from her eyes.

* * *

Sailor Moon was hopping from rooftop to rooftop and running along the curved surfaces of Pill tubes, all the time following the directions on her wrist communicator. As she went lower into the city, she couldn't help putting a hand in front of her mouth to block the smell. The further down you went in Tokyo, the more factories you encountered and the thicker the smog became. With so many buildings squeezed so tightly together, there just wasn't enough wind to clear away the heavy smoke, unlike the thinner and more spacious city above. Some sections were so bad that the government had banned all human labor in an attempt to save lives. She couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy for those forced to live under such conditions.

Up ahead, a couple of workers sat on a pill tube, eating their dinner. Unable to avoid them, Usagi was forced to leap over the two burly men as she sped past. She silently cursed her short skirt as the cat calls and whistles caught up to her. Who came up with this uniform anyway? It was cute and all, but not the most convenient thing to be fighting in.

She was still blushing when she reached her destination. There were only a few police hovers floating around the area, but Usagi could see a thick fog coming out of the small chemical factory.

The sailor suited defender of justice almost sighed in relief. Mercury had already arrived on the scene. The police were also being smart for once and not interfering. Squinting, she could just make out the blue skirted Senshi standing by a door, making sure all the workers gotten out all right.

Usagi took a moment to scan the surrounding buildings. She was looking for Tuxedo Kamen, the masked man who had helped her on several occasions. He didn't always show up, and she almost never saw him before he had decided to help, but it was always reassuring to catch a glimpse of him standing in the shadows. Ready to lend a helping hand whenever it was needed.

Luna still wouldn't tell her much about the man, but it didn't bother her as much as it once did. There weren't a lot of things the cat wasn't willing to talk about, and a kindly (if sometimes mischievous) stranger was the least of them.

It had taken Sailor Mercury's intense questioning to make Usagi realize just how much her kitty was holding out on them. She would only say that there was one Senshi for each planet in the Solar System and that Usagi was meant to gather and lead them. Beyond that, she would just say, 'You must remember that on your own.' Or, the almost more infuriating, 'All shall be revealed, when the time is right.'

Sailor Moon trusted her cat, and loved her more than anything, but when would be the right time? If it wasn't now, when innocent lives were in danger, then when?

Sailor Mercury turned at her approach and gave her a relieved, but strained, smile. "I think I've gotten everyone out." The girl's voice was so much stronger, more confident than in her normal guise. "I checked with the foreman and he seems to think everyone's accounted for."

Usagi bobbed her head and closed her eyes for a moment. Her ability to hear the distress of others had never again been as clear as it was that first night. But, if she concentrated hard enough, she could sometimes manage to make out pockets of fear or sadness. Sensing only the dark energy of whatever foul beast was inside the factory, Sailor Moon opened her eyes.

She shook her head, "I only sense _it_. What about you're scanners?"

Mercury's glasses suddenly gained a bluish tint as they linked wirelessly to her computer and she scanned the building. The child prodigy shook her head as well. "Nothing. There's an evil aura permeating the building, but I can't get a better reading."

Usagi looked around to see that the cops and local workers were starting to get curious. Unless they fancied a long chat with the authorities, it was time for them to get moving.

After Mercury released the mist, the two Senshi stepped into the dark building.

* * *

Mercury was still annoyed with Usagi. She hadn't appreciated it the way Usagi had covered her communicator before she had a chance to speak. If she thought of it logically, it had made sense, but she didn't feel like being logical. Mercury had been forced to get all the workers out by herself, without any help from the pink-haired girl. She didn't like dealing with people. Even if she did feel more secure in her Senshi form, it was always hard. There were just too many variables to deal with, and no matter what you did someone ended up angry with you.

Her foot slipped from under her and she flailed wildly in the dark for a railing. Luckily, Sailor Moon was close behind to catch her before she fell. 'Stupid heals,' she thought to herself, 'I'll never get used to fighting in these things.' She had never been what you would call "fashion conscious" and that day in the Tolar Tower was her first time wearing the stupid things. Now she found herself having to fight all manner of unnatural beasts while still trying to figure out how to stand. Why did she accept that cat's offer again?

Shion tapped the side of her glasses with her white gloved finger. At least she wouldn't have to rely on Usagi catching her. The display had changed, they now operated just like night vision goggles, allowing her to see in the dark factory. Although tainted by green, she could now clearly see Sailor Moon walking behind her, arms outstretched.

"I can't see a thing!" Whined the less well equipped Senshi. "Mercury, can you seen anything? Where are they?"

Shion shook her head, but then realized she would have to speak up to be understood. "I don't know… Nothing has moved yet, but they're definitely still here. Let's split up to cover more ground." She didn't really feel like being around Usagi at the moment.

"O-ok, but it's so dark in here, what if we get lost?"

Shion shrugged, another invisible gesture. "We can always find our way out, the exit signs are still lit after all."

She could see Usagi looking nervous as she fidgeted. "Well, if you say so. It's just so creepy in here."

Shion rolled her eyes. "There's nothing to be afraid of."

'Just the beastmen lurking in every shadow,' she added silently to herself. But really, sometimes Usagi worried too much. Shion was the one who should be concerned. Sailor Moon was the one with a real attack. All Shion could rely on was the little martial arts she had picked up from her grandfather. She had begun practicing regularly once more, but it wasn't like a couple of kicks or a punch would do much against Zero's near immortal minions. She might be able to cast a fog and run away, but that didn't always work out.

As she walked further away from her partner, she couldn't help but feel a pang of doubt. Was it really wise to go their separate ways? They had no real idea of how many beastmen were here or even if Zero himself had come.

But why shouldn't Usagi cope by herself for a little while? It wasn't like they were connected at the hip or anything. They had met not even two weeks ago. Besides which, Usagi had already proven today how little she thought of Shion's advice. Otherwise, she would have stayed to listen instead of going off with the oh-so-pretty Lina Lovegood.

Something moved to her right. She spun, hand going to her wrist communicator. She stood there, frozen in place. Her eyes raked the spot, the scene tinged with green by the night vision application on her glasses.

She kept watching yet nothing moved. Slowly, she let her hands fall to her sides. She stepped tentatively forward to investigate, heels clicking lightly on the metal grate of the walkway. She got to the edge of the railing and looked down. This must have been what she had seen. A large chemical vat, the liquid inside open to the air. The dark chemical rippled ever so slightly and what little light there was reflected off its surface.

She sighed at shook her head. Here she was, jumping at shadows, it might have been better to go with Sailor Moon after all. But she was sure the girl would have jumped even more than her. She might try to hide it, but deep down Sailor Moon was just like her mother had been when she was young.

Wait, when had she met Usagi's mother? And where had she heard about what she was like as a girl? Something her own mother had said… But that didn't make any sense either. Her mother didn't even know Usagi, let alone Usagi's mom. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.

What of any of this made sense? A madman starts terrorizing Tokyo, and uses 'magic' to do it. She somehow gets involved and lands in the heart of the chaos. Then ,a talking cat appears before her to grant her incredible powers. Powers that ignore all the laws of physics. She had tried to take it all in stride. She had tried to get some answers, make a few theories, but it just wasn't working. The cat wouldn't say anything, Usagi was clueless, and the more she thought about it the more she regretted getting involved.

Shion stared at the dark liquid, lost in thought. She had forgotten that she was here to fight, not contemplate impossible questions. But so absorbed in her own mind, she barely noticed as a small, round light appeared in the depths of the barrel. It pulsed slowly, with tiny, constant beats, the rhythm like that of a heart. The surface of the chemical began to stir more violently and the light grew steadily brighter.

Shion finally looked at the small light, even brighter through her night-vision glasses. 'I wonder what that is.' She thought to herself, not really concentrating on an answer, still absorbed in her own mind's meandering thoughts. 'What type of chemical do they make here anyway? The light's are still off, could this be the result of some kind of additive?"

She was about to look up exactly what was manufactured at the factory, when she heard a scream. Spinning around, she tried to determine the source. It had definitely been Sailor Moon who had screamed. What had happened? Was she in some kind of trouble?

It was then that she felt it. A cold, dark feeling that crept up her leg, twining itself around her boot.

She jumped away, using her magically enhanced legs in an attempt to flee the cold grasp. Her body moved, but her foot refused to leave the ground. The dark thing held her tight to the grated walkway.

Feeling like a Nightmare Frame had just tried to tear her leg off, Shion bent down to remove her long boot and free herself from whatever had taken hold of her. But as she bent over, she saw that her boot was already covered in a black, moving liquid. Her hand recoiled as it crept further up her leg, making contact with her gloved fingers.

'What is this thing?' She thought, appalled. 'This is no beastman. What were they making in here?'

She shivered in revulsion as the substance crested the top of the boot and touched her bare skin. She had to get out of there. She had to get this thing off her. Her struggles became fiercer as she tugged and tugged at her booted foot. But the more she tugged, the more she pushed, pulled, and struggled, the tighter it gripped. And, the more time she spent trying to escape, the more of her body it covered.

She could tell it was moving faster as she felt it make its slimy way up her thigh. Lifting up her wrist, she decided she had to call Sailor Moon. No matter what trouble Moon was in, it was impossible for Mercury to get away without her leader's help.

The pulsating light appeared over her left shoulder and dark liquid covered her mouth. She let out a silent scream. It was covering her, smothering her, gripping her tight in its dark embrace. She couldn't move. She couldn't see. She couldn't _breathe_!

* * *

Usagi squeaked as her nose knocked into her fifth pole. Ooooh, why did it have to be so dark in here? If her costume had come with any sort of pockets, she could have brought a flashlight. But no, she had to blunder around in this dark, scary, old factory all by herself.

She caught sight of a dark object to her left and spun around. Her foot lashed out at the bristly beastman. There was a loud snap and a clatter as the dark form fell to the ground.

She waited patiently for it to get up and attack her. There was no way a beastman could be killed so easily. But it just lay there. What was it waiting for? Was it playing dead, hoping for an opportunity to strike?

Tentatively, she stepped forward. Her eyes were peeled for the slightest movement. The toe of her shoe nudged against a small object and it skittered away from her. Crouching low, she searched blindly with her hands for the hairy body.

Her hand landed on tough bristles. Usagi's heart skipped a beat. Having found the creature, her hand went to her forehead. Taking off the delicate, gold tiara, she transformed it into the discuss of light.

A golden glow showed down upon the ground to reveal the bushy head of… a broom. Usagi couldn't help herself and kicked the broken broom away. She had gotten all worked up over one lousy broomstick. Were there even any monsters in here?

A hand clamped onto her shoulder and she screamed. A high terrified screech that echoed off all the walls. It had her! It had her! A horrible, scary monster had gotten her when she wasn't looking! She was struggling, trying to break free of the hand that held her as she continued to scream.

"For the love of the Moon! Be quiet!"

She knew that voice. It was a male voice, boyish and mischievous. "T-Tuxedo Kamen?"

"Yes! And if you value my hearing, don't ever do that again!"

Her eyes swept the spot where his voice was coming from. She thought she could just make out his delicate, white mask and the darker outline of his form.

"By all the stars that shine, I'd have gone deaf if you had gone on like that much longer."

Usagi stamped her foot indignantly. "It's your own fault! I didn't ask you to sneak up on me like that!"

She felt a hand go over her mouth. "Ssshh! Still your voice Sailor Moon and hearken to what I have to say."

Still upset at him sneaking up on her, she never the less nodded her head.

"Something is amiss in this place. Evil lurks in every shadow, yet something has stayed its hand. I can feel it waiting. For what, I can not say. But it is better for you to leave this place. Call your comrade and flee. No battle may be won here!"

Sailor Moon shook her head and removed the white gloved hand. "I can't! It is my duty to fight evil wherever it is!"

Tuxedo Kamen's voice held a tinge of desperation. "No innocent yet lingers here. Your fellow Senshi has already seen to that. Nothing will be gained and everything lost if we tarry here. It is yet not too late to flee!"

Usagi hesitated. Should she just run away? If what he said was true, and they could not win, it would be the smart thing to do. Everyone was safe, what if they just left? But the cold, soft voice of a woman put the end to her deliberations before she could decide.

"Oh, it's already too late. It was too late the moment you set foot in this building, young man."

A faint glow grew around them, emanating from the large drums that held whatever chemical they made in this factory. The soft light slowly revealed the form of a woman, floating in midair. Her hair was green and so long that it reached the small of her back. She wore a long, white dress over her tall, womanly figure. But no, it wasn't really a dress. It had buckles and straps meant to restrain the wearer. It was a straight jacket. Usagi would have been taken aback by this revelation but she had just seen something far more disturbing. It was in the woman's face, covered by a simple white mask reminiscent of Tuxedo Kamen's, the woman's eyes still stood out. They were so cold, so lifeless yet so full of immense knowledge. These eyes, she knew, had witnessed countless horrors.

A shiver ran down Usagi's spine as the woman's eyes locked with her own. They pierced her where she stood. The gaze pinned her in place. A dark sensation ran through her and she felt as if her soul was being weighed by those eyes. The woman sneered and she knew she had been found wanting.

Tuxedo Kamen didn't wait, didn't ask questions. The moment he could see the woman clearly, his body transformed into a blur of motion. Eight deadly roses flew from his hands. The ninth he held as he launched himself after his projectiles. In his grip, it transformed into the thorny green blade he always used in combat.

The roses shattered in midair as one after another they hit an invisible barrier. Quick behind them, Tuxedo Kamen's green blade struck the barrier. Sparks flew, excess energy as the atmosphere between the blade and the green haired woman bent. The dapper swordsman let out a roar of fury as he put his full force into rending the space in two.

The woman only lifted a single pale hand in response to the swordsman's wrath. Tenderly, almost lovingly, she caressed his cheek, thumb rubbing gently against his lower lip.

The man tried to bite the finger. A loud crack and flash of light threw him back. The green blade spun in the air and his top hat was lost in the darkness. His body crashed to the ground, metal rending under the force of the impact.

Sailor Moon shook the effects of the paralyzing gaze from her, taking the circlet from her brow.

"Moon Tiara Action!"

The gold disk sailed from her hand. But it sliced nothing but air. The green haired woman was no longer anywhere to be seen. She had vanished completely.

"Snake Bind!"[1]

The woman's voice called out from behind her. Usagi spun on the spot. The woman stood behind her, arm outstretched. To her horror, long, ugly snake-like objects with clawed, snatching heads erupted in a circle from around the woman's hand. They gripped Usagi's arms and legs and wrapped themselves tightly about her body.

Sailor Moon was pulled down, dragged there by the weight of the writhing creatures. They squirmed over her, holding her against the floor. She cringed at the icky feeling of them against her skin. A white boot planted itself firmly in front of her face. She struggled to bend her head back to look up at the woman who had so easily laid her low. A small smile played across the elegant woman's face. Usagi tried to break free of her bonds, but those cold, dark, fathomless eyes were locked with hers once more and pinned her in place. Her body went limp and her face froze.

* * *

The orange skirted warrior watched from the shadows as the two girls entered the building. They wore similar garb to her own and their exploits were well known, but for some reason she did not go to meet them. A lingering resentment held her back. She would wait, and see how they dealt with the monsters within.

She had been favorably impressed that they had managed to get the workers out. In the past the group had often recklessly and needlessly endangered the very people they were trying to save. But, she figured that even the dullest girl could sometimes learn from her mistakes.

She waited there for a long time, listening for any sounds of fighting. Perhaps she was too far away to hear anything. They should be done soon anyway. Beastmen could be tough to deal with, but no battle should take this long. Not from what she had seen of the pink-haired girl's power, anyway.

Perhaps it was him. Perhaps it was the masked mastermind himself who had come here. She went to take a step forward then stopped. But no. No, that man would not have been content appearing on such a stage. No cameras and no one to see, the narcissistic madman would never come to such a place as this. This grimy, smelly, run-down excuse for a workplace. The very air itself felt dirty against her skin and she couldn't help but shudder at the thought that she was actually breathing it.

Of course, that begged the question: Why was she even here? She had no desire to work with these naive, careless, little girls. They were not the ones who patrolled the city every night. They were not the ones who, for two years, captured all sorts of criminals and stopped every manor of crime. They were the ones who, with their flashy and reckless meddling, had ruined her deal with the police chief. Why should she bother with these girls who only ever took care of the occasional monster? Who never took the time to care for the common people.

Her radio buzzed, breaking into her thoughts. Only two streets down, some men had broken into a couple of houses. Low people, they were taking advantage of the distraction caused at the factory in order to enrich themselves. She should go after them. She should stop them. Yet she did not move.

The factory was still silent but she saw a dark figure drop silently to the roof of the building. She could just make out the billowing of the cape and the tall black hat. He crouched low and she thought she saw the briefest flash of white as his head turned slightly in her direction.

She sighed to herself. If that man was here, then there was nothing to worry about. She might as well go now and deal with the men two streets down. Of the vigilante group, he was the only one for whom she had any respect. She had gone through much trouble to procure the security tapes of the previous incidents and had observed him most closely. He was the reason this vigilante group had succeeded when they should have failed.

When that bubble headed, pink-haired bimbo would have made a mess of a bad hostage situation, he had been there. Her heart had almost stopped the first time she saw him standing on that balcony. He had been so dashing, so heroic. She had later watched the other recording to see how he silently, almost instantaneously slew the beastmen guarding the hostages. Then, she had seen that it was he who had managed to get past the beastmen surrounding Tolar Tower. It was he who dispatched the hoards guarding the stairwells. In all the Solar System, could there be a better swordsman than him? And, it was he who risked his own life to save that pink-haired crybaby, who later sat crying at the door that she could not open.

What had happened next was a mystery to the girl, a stray bullet having destroyed the last workable camera. But she was sure, she was sure that it had been the masked gentleman who. struggling through pain and injury, got the girl into the control room and stopped the madman Zero. What the red-haired Senshi had to do with it all, she didn't know. She wasn't even sure the girl had been at the tower. From what she could tell of later fights, all the girl could do was summon fogs and type away on her compact computer.

The dark form on the roof had finally decided to act. Lifting up a window, he jumped into the building.

The girl gave out a long sigh. It would have been nice to get a closer look. He had seemed quite handsome on film. She hadn't been able to see his eyes, but had little trouble taking in his taught body and perfect mouth. She thought back to when he had fallen with Sailor Moon, feeling a pang of envy. She would have endured anything to be held so tightly in those strong arms. Without his hat, he had looked younger than she originally thought. He probably wasn't much older than she was. Her hands balled into fists as she thought of Sailor Moon trying to steal a kiss from the man, _her_ man. It was only his timely awakening that had saved him from that fate.

Why should she work with such an unscrupulous, underhanded little girl? But then… what if something happened to him when she wasn't there? Just the thought of that perfect body lying broken on the ground made her blood run cold. Sailor Moon had proven she was not to be trusted. There was no way that amateur could protect him. It was only a matter of time until she did something so stupid it would get them both killed.

The orange skirted girl took a step toward the building but stopped. They probably had already won. There was no reason to interfere now. Any moment, they would make their escape.

She watched the doors and windows, waiting for one to open. She especially wanted to spot that dark figure once more. If she could just follow him, maybe she could talk to him away from the others. It was possible, just barely possible that he would agree to leave their group and join her. Once they were working together, she could take her time winning him over. There would be no reason to rush and no one to compete with.

She waited another five minutes. What was taking them so long? The police were already starting to edge towards the building and the crowd that had gathered was getting noisy. Could she have missed their departure?

No, impossible. She had positioned herself slightly above the factory so she could watch all the exits. The man might have been able to slip away, hidden in the shadows, but there was no hiding that pink hair. She could have spotted that a mile away.

Another five minutes passed. She could be mistaken. She could have missed them leave. Maybe there were more ways out of the building than she had thought. If they had already left then waiting here was pointless.

Finally, deciding that the two girls and that dashing young man had already departed, the orange skirted girl turned and left the scene.

* * *

Shion had held her breath for as long as she could. A stream of bubbles erupted from her mouth and she began to swallow the dark liquid. Darkness crept in at the edges of her eyes, blocking out all but the thin stream of bubbles. They traveled slowly upward, towards the surface of the fluid sphere that trapped her. She could see as tiny droplet of liquid was flung away by the largest bubble popped.

That's it!

Her mind was suddenly crystal clear as the blue-skirted Senshi concentrated all of her power. Unable to speak, she had to shout the words in her mind alone.

'BUBBLE SPRAY!'

Unable to concentrate the magic with her hands like she usually would, it seeped from her in all directions. Streams and streams of bubbles poured from everywhere on her body, flowing with especial force from her hands and feet. Without her normal control, they came out in all sizes. Large and small, they churned the chemical into a white froth.

Sailor Mercury dropped from the creature's now slack grip and landed back onto the metal walkway. She was retching and heaving on all fours. She coughed and spat mouthfuls of the dark fluid while desperately trying to get air into her drenched lungs.

The dark monster's frothing died down and the dilapidated sphere reformed around the pulsating light. Shion managed to roll to the side as a tendril of darkness shot out at her. More dark feelers flew from the floating sphere and she continued to roll on the ground. Eventually, she managed to gain her feet once more. She rushed the dark blob, gathering power as she crossed the space between her and it. Thrusting her hands into the rippling surface, she called out her attack.

"Bubble Spray!"

This time, instead of making the uncountable amounts of smaller bubbles which formed her fog, she concentrated on making one enormous sphere of air. Sailor Mercury poured her magic into her hands, holding the image of the single bubble in her mind. She could see it working. The bubble's membrane grew larger and larger and the liquid creature began to distend and distort.

Finally, the bubble was as large as she could make it and she wrenched her hands back. There was a loud *pop* as the dark fluid was spattered everywhere.

Shion wasted no time, but used her magically enhanced body to jump, grabbing the glowing orb, still floating in midair. The sphere turned out to be a small glass ball that burned Shion's hand as she grasped it. She was sure that this was the monster's core and that meant she had to do only one thing. Before it could begin to reform its body, Shion pulled back her arm. With all the force she could muster, she cast the ball of light to the ground.

The sphere let out countless smaller balls of light as it shattered against the metal grate. These smaller lights drifted slowly upwards before winking out, one by one.

Shion sank to her knees, sobbing in relief. She had thought she was about to die. It had only been her quick thinking and the special traits of her attack that had saved her life. She wondered, briefly, if Usagi would have been so lucky in a similar situation.

Usagi! That scream... What had happened to her? Did one of these creatures catch her as well? Was she at this very moment suffocating, breathing her last breath and wondering where Sailor Mercury had gone to? Why had she ever insisted on splitting up? It was a stupid, spiteful plan. She had wanted pay Usagi back for ignoring her. And now what? Usagi would die because of her pettiness.

Shion looked to the direction of her friend's scream and realized she had more problems. Every chemical vat had begun to glow, signaling a liquid monster in each one. She raced down the walkway, ignoring the chemical spilling flowing over the rim of their containers. If she could just reach Usagi first…

She was forced to switch of her night-vision as the light strengthened and she jumped over a reaching tentacle. She rolled under the next and was back on her feet. Suddenly, there was a mass of darkness in front of her. She pushed her hands forward, calling out her attack.

The mass broke and she jumped through the opening. Her foot lashed out in a kick even her grandfather would have approved of, and the small ball of light shattered. She had landed and was rolling back to her feet before she knew. Her heals were long forgotten in the instinctual rush to save her friend.

Her way was blocked again. Again she blasted apart the barrier, but before she could move through the gap, her foot was caught from behind. Placing her hands over the tendril that had seized her leg, she sent a stream of bubbles into the appendage, dissolving its grip entirely.

Returning her gaze to the front, she saw her way was blocked once more. The creature she had blasted apart had reformed, two more now floatingd alongside it. She would have no choice but to force her way through.

Something caught her arms from behind just as she was about to thrust her hands forward. She turned her head to see that she had been surrounded. Six pricks of light formed a circle in a dark ring that closed in around her.

She struggled to break free of what had hold of her arms, but she was powerless as a wave of darkness crashed down on her. Awash in a sea of nothingness, she was pulled and twisted in every direction. All around forces yanked on her body. Closing her eyes, she calmed her racing heart. She concentrated, focusing her magic. The bubble expanded out from her in every direction. Floating in the center of it, she pushed and pushed outward with her mind until she could stretch her magic no further and the massive thing popped.

She fell to the floor, panting, six naked lights floated in a circle around her. The strain of pushing back those six creatures had almost been too much. She looked up, only to see that the dark substance was already beginning to reform around the six orbs of light.

'I can't do it.' She thought desperately. 'It's too much. I can't, not again. Where will it end?'

A shout resounded overhead, a bright yellow line of light piercing down from above. Like the beam of a laser, it flew through the air and struck a floating sphere, punching through to the other side. The orb shattered into a million pieces and the light inside escaped.

Shion's eyes flicked away from the fading light to see an orange blur descending from above. It broke another sphere in its wake and landing squarely in front of Sailor Mercury. A blonde stroke of color filled her vision as the figure spun on the spot. Her white gloved finger pointed accusingly at a still whole ball of light.

"Crescent Beam!"

The same yellow line she had seen before shot from the finger and shattered the third sphere.

"Crescent Beam! Crescent Beam! Crescent Beam!"

Three more lines of energy shot from the girl's finger. Three more spheres shattered. The light had now dimed considerably, but Shion could still see as the girl turned to face her. She was probably the most beautiful girl Shion had ever seen, including the much renowned Lina Lovegood. Her silky, blonde hair cascaded past her shoulders and her eyes were a clear blue that sparkled like a lake in the mid-summer sun. But it wasn't the girl's angelic face or perfect body, with legs that went on forever, that made Shion gasp, it was the uniform that she wore. Before her stood the third Sailor Senshi.

She understood immediately the anomaly of the previous night. It had been this girl who had taken care of the beastman and returned the stolen goods.

The orange skirted Senshi's beautiful face was fierce as she stood forth and proclaimed herself. "I Am the Sailor Suited Defender of Love and Justice, Sailor Venus! Now tell me, where is Sailor Moon!"

* * *

A rose blossomed from the darkness. The woman simply tilted her head and it sailed past. Just as before, Usagi's tuxedo suited defender was not far behind his projectile. The woman whirled round, green hair flying. She had Tuxedo Kamen's sword arm in her hand in one second, in the next her foot then arced around behind him and slammed the young man to the floor. Usagi heard the pop as the black suited man's shoulder was removed from its socket. His face was pale and his teeth were gritted against the pain, but Usagi was close enough to read the unyielding rage still glittering in his blue eyes.

Tuxedo Kamen struggled violently against the woman standing over him, bucking and flailing his good arm. The woman gave Usagi a look, eyebrow arched behind white mask, lips quirked in a sideways smile. The expression clearly condemned the foolishness of men. She twisted his wrist which gave out a snapping sound. Tuxedo Kamen let out a cry of pain, cut off by the woman's booted foot coming down on the back of his head. His forehead cracked terribly against the ground with enough force to send spider web thin lines out from the point of impact.

The woman sighed before sitting elegantly onto Tuxedo Kamen's now limp body. "Why he ever thought he could beat me, I'm sure I don't know. Running would have been smarter. But… I suppose it was a little late for that."

"Who are you?" Usagi cried. "Why are you doing this?"

The woman fussed for a moment with a wrinkle in her clothing. "I am called C.C., young bunny rabbit. You've played a bit with my husband, haven't you?"

"Your, your husband?" Usagi asked, completely confused.

"Yes," she said amusedly. "That dashing young man with the black cape and that marvelous helmet."

"You're… you're… He has a wife?" She managed to ask in disbelief.

The woman let out a peal of girlish laughter. "Oh to be as young and as innocent as you are. Yes little Moon rabbit, he has a wife. Did you think a man of his power would be without one?"

"But you'd have to be insane to want to-" She stopped, remembering she was talking to a woman in a straightjacket.

The woman smiled coldly at her, knowing how her sentence would have ended. "My husband has been far too careless with you. Twice, you almost killed him. Not to mention, the endless amounts of beastmen he allowed you to kill. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to make just one?"

Usagi didn't answer. She was rooted to the spot by the woman's eyes and bound by the snakes; still she just couldn't get over the idea that Zero was married. Well, they had wondered who had saved him the last time. But his wife? Really? That had to be illegal or something. She suddenly got the mental image of a bunch of miniature Zero's running around with capes and helmets, throwing lightning bolts at each other.

C.C. went on talking even without Sailor Moon's answer. "Anyway, I decided that enough was enough. I told him that it was better to let a few of your toys break than put yourself at risk. He told me that, if I was so worried about it, to take care of it myself. Well, that wouldn't be too difficult, I thought. So I took some of my own creations and a few beastmen then set up this little trap. I used some of the beastmen to pose as the workers while the others stole a few police hovers. A simple radio call and you all came running. It really was too easy. A girl should never be too predictable, you know."

Usagi was stunned. It had been a trap from the beginning. She hadn't even noticed the evil aura of the workers over the one permeating the building. "But why not just attack us when we arrived at the factory? Why wait?"

The woman shook her head in mock dismay. "No, no, no, you don't understand. I had to make sure you wouldn't get away, of course. The one I really wanted was this young man here." At this, she stroked Tuxedo Kamen's brown hair, a genuine look of affection crossing her face. "He's just so pretty, I had to have him. Besides, without him, the rest of you are nothing, nothing at all." Her last few words were light and cheery like the chirping of a bird.

"But why? Why do any of it? What's the point in trying to revive a country ten thousand years gone? Nobody even remembers it existed!"

C.C. smiled thinly. "Why? Well, my husband has his reasons. But why do I do it? For the power. All that wealth. All those people under my command, it's…" She shivered and closed her eyes, hugging herself tight, exited at the very thought. Usagi looked at her, degusted as the woman remained in that state of ecstasy for a full minute. Eventually, the spell passed and the woman continued. "Well, that wasn't the whole reason. The entertainment value is priceless. It's just so fun to see all those short lived people scurrying about, trying to stop him."

Usagi couldn't help herself and her disgust broke free of her lips. "How can you do it? Don't you see people are suffering because of you? Don't you care? How can your heart be so hard?"

The dark eyes became even harder, and the woman's response was cold. "Eight thousand years will do that to a person, Rabbit-chan. When you're as old as I am, I'm sure you'd do anything for a bit of entertainment."

Usagi was silent, certain that no matter how old she got, she would never be like the woman before her.

C.C. stood abruptly, performing a small pirouette on the spot.

"Well, Moon dear, this has been a lovely chat, but I think it's about time we said our goodbyes."

Snapping her fingers once, both she and Tuxedo Kamen's limp body began to float in midair. A second snap of her fingers and the snakes binding Usagi disappeared.

"You're, you're letting me go?" Sailor Moon asked as she rose to her feet.

C.C. let out a falsely girlish laugh. "Oh my dear, dear bunny rabbit, killing you outright would be no fun at all! Without your man here to protect you, you'll die soon enough anyway. My pets have already taken care of your friend. I doubt you will fare much better."

Usagi noticed for the first time that the lights had moved from their vats and were now floating in midair as well. Around each light, the chemical that had been inside the cylinder had gathered into a sphere.

C.C. stopped to give Sailor Moon a look then lifted Tuxedo Kamen's chin. She placed her lips firmly on his, moving them with obvious relish against his limp mouth. She stayed that way for a long time, before giving Sailor Moon one last wave.

Just as the green-haired woman was about to vanish and be gone forever, Usagi heard a high voiced cry of rage. A yellow and orange something flew from the darkness and clung to the floating pair as all three forms winked out of existence.

* * *

She had been just about to leave when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Looking back, she saw as lights began to grow in the factory as the people outside began to change. The policemen and factory workers converted right before her eyes. Their human guise fell away as each and every one took on its own true, hideous form. Realizing something had gone terribly wrong, Sailor Venus had entered the building from a side window. She had watched as the blue Senshi blasted apart one of the creatures and destroyed the orb that served as its heart. Feeling a tad more respect for this Senshi, she held herself back. Maybe the girl would be able to take care of things all by herself. It quickly became apparent, however, that she would soon be overwhelmed. After beating back the onslaught of six of the fluid creatures, Sailor Venus could see the fight drain out of the girl. It was then that she had made her move. Taking advantage of the opening made by the blue Senshi, she had descended to the walkway and destroyed the orbs.

After that, the two of them had raced to find Sailor Moon. She knew Sailor Moon would be in trouble, which meant the young swordsman would be as well. Sure enough, when she arrived Sailor Moon was just standing there, gaping at the green haired witch as she kissed _her_ swordsman. She couldn't help a cry of anger as she launched herself at the pair. She had just gotten hold of the vixen when the factory disappeared.

Grey mist swirled around her. She couldn't understand where she was or how she had gotten there. Then a single sharp slap sent her reeling. The woman tossed a limp Tuxedo Kamen to the side as she marched over to the prone Senshi. She tried to fight back, but the woman's strength was incredible. She held her throat in a vice like grip, choking the air from her.

A deep, dark laugh resounded oddly in the still place. A black figure swept out of the mist to stand not two yards away. "I see things didn't go exactly as planned." The dark voice purred the words, mocking the woman.

"It was a small mistake," the woman spat. "The rest of them are dead, this one will soon be also."

"You think so, do you?" No expression could be seen behind the helmet's glass, but his tone was both mocking and playful.

He gestured to an archway she hadn't noticed before. Images showed there. Two Sailor Senshi had made their way out of the factory and were now fighting through a small horde beastmen. In spite of herself, she felt a small sense of triumph over the fact that the two girls had managed to escape.

The woman growled in anger and her grip tightened around Sailor Venus' throat. The last thing she saw before darkness engulfed her was the shockingly pink hair of Sailor Moon.

* * *

[1] Snake Bind: Check out 3x3 Eyes Chapter 211, Page 7

* * *

I would like to take this time to once again say sorry for the late update. I would also like to express my unending gratitude to those of you who have read, reviewed, and even favorited my work. Only another writer can know the rollercoaster of emotion and indecision that goes into a project like this.

My goal of monthly updates simply can not be accomplished. I'm kind of a slow writer and typist. This, combined with the fact I'm still in school is... Anyway, I hope to have chapter four out before the end of the summer, but don't get your hopes up since I'll be spending three weeks working in Japan. (Wooot!)


	4. Chapter 4

The Third Rising: The unofficial continuation of Destiny's Child

By: Me, Myself, and I

Original Story By: Fire

You already know, this is a crossover primarily between Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon but I've also brought some things in from Code Geass and Xenosaga. I also managed to bring in a bit of 3x3 Eyes in the last chapter and there was perhaps a familiar name from another series in chapter two. All rights belong to the creators of those series. If you don't tell them I'm stealing- I mean 'barrowing' their stuff, I'm sure they won't even care. I will continue to pilfer from the great authors of these series as I go on writing the story I couldn't write any other way.

* * *

Chapter Four:

Tuesday, September 2nd, 7059 A.C.E. (After Crystal Era)

She leapt from the crystal teleport platform and ran down the walkway, a child held in her arms. Ash fell thicker than snow and strands of fire lit the bloody sky. She didn't feel any safer here than on Venus. But if she could just reach the Queen...

She coughed and spat. The ash was in her eyes and in her mouth but there was nothing with which she could block it. Her throat burned and chest heaved.

"mommy?" A small hoarse voice managed to make itself heard.

She stopped, and looked in amazement at the boy in her arms. It was his first word and she couldn't help but smile. His face was soot blackened and his small, delicate little hands reached questioningly to the sky. She blinked the ash away from her eyes and looked up.

Bright flashes of yellow met burning strands of red in a small series of explosions. Her mother was fighting, far above the sky. She looked back down and continued to run, determined not to fail such a brave, kind woman.

The baby wouldn't stop coughing. Tears of desperation cleared small tracks of dust from her face. She could see the large doors ahead of her and she pushed her legs to the limit, their furious pumping only stopping when she was right before the massive crystal slabs.

The infant's coughing was getting weaker and she could feel the pain in her own lungs. Still burning ash had seeped into her lungs to torment her from the inside. She pulled on the handles with all her might, but the large doors would not move an inch. In exhausted fury, she beat against their crystal surface with a trembling fist. She could feel her body weakening, each blow feebler than the last.

She screamed out for anyone, anyone to open the doors, for someone to come and save them. Her voice cracked once, twice, then failed her completely as she fell to her knees. Her body convulsed in silent, ragged spasms as it desperately tried to take in air.

Her body, too weak to support the violent convulsions any more, went limp as she fell against the door. Her eyes fell to the child. He had been still for far too long. Trembling fingers wiped the ash from his tiny eyes and mouth, but he did not stir.

Her face was close to his, her grimy cheek almost pressed against his mouth. But she could feel nothing, not even the smallest breath to show he yet lived.

She summoned the last bits of her magic, chipping away at her own life to raise herself onto all fours. She placed her mouth to his and breathed out, transferring more ash than air. Then, with three of her slender fingers she pressed down on the small chest several times, desperately trying to make his miniature lungs take in the air they needed and, dare she think it, restart the heart that had probably already stopped.

Again and again, she tried to make the child breath while she shouted out for help. But it was all too much for her own lungs to stand and her body shuddered. The magic was burning her body up. She could see veins begin to show through wrinkled skin. All she could do was prevent herself from falling on the child as she collapsed on the ground.

Her face was too the sky, but she could no longer see the flashes of yellow light amongst the rain of fire. She didn't even blink as flecks of burning ash landed on her eyes. It was all over, everything they had worked for up to this point was over. It was hard to believe that the entire kingdom could be destroyed so fast. No one even knew what had gone wrong and now it was all ending. Back on her home planet people were suffocating as the spells and machines that maintained their atmosphere failed. And here, the cradle of human life was being covered in the ash of a million meteors, dragged behind the new, fiery moon and burned away by the ten thousand new volcanoes erupting do to that same moon's new gravity. The Earth was being destroyed from above and below as the human race died.

Was that a flash of yellow she just saw in the sky? Could her mother still be out there, still fighting? Her momentary feeling of hope disappeared as more coughs sent her body into spasms. Her vision was diming when a shadow blocked her view of the sky. The silhouette glowed golden around the edges, she should remember who he was...

* * *

The orange skirted Senshi was sobbing as she woke, her body heaving with the uncontrollable grief. She had thought she had a brother. She had thought he was out there somewhere. Somewhere in this new age, somewhere among the faceless masses, but he wasn't. He had died outside that door, choked by that burning, grey snow. She wouldn't be finding him among the random strangers of this time.

Oh why! Why her? Why did she have these memories, these powers? Why did her brother have to die in such a way? He had been young, so young, so innocent.

She felt a gentle hand stroke her hair. "Hush, hush… It's ok, I know, I know... It hurts to remember, doesn't it?" The voice was soft and warm, full of kindness and compassion.

The Senshi gathered fistfuls of white cloth into her hands and sobbed into the woman's soft lap.

"The door was locked!" she cried out, her voice ripping from her throat. "The door was locked! It should never have been locked! Never!"

The woman stroked her hair soothingly.

"Sshh, shh, I know, I know. They were like that, always spouting ideals, but the moment things got tough, all they thought of was themselves."

The blonde nodded, agreeing with the soft and gentle voice. She buried her face deeper into the skirt as the tears continued to come.

There was a tinkle of glass and she turned her head. A small glass vile settled in front of her eyes, held in delicate, white gloved fingers. The vile exerted a strange pull on her mind, drawing her eyes in. She didn't even notice that she had stopped crying as she gazed at the viscous liquid inside. Blacker than tar at midnight and darker than the deepest cave, the contents of the vile felt as if it could take away her very soul.

"Here now," the kind woman said, "drink this. I guarantee, you'll feel much better once you do."

She took the vile, not even questioning the soothing voice, and drank it all in one gulp. An odd, heady sensation passed through her body as she again placed her head on the warm lap. Soon she couldn't even remember why she had been crying.

"There…" the voice said, "isn't that better?"

She nodded and murmured her agreement, her eyes fallowing the gentle swaying of a lock of green hair.

"You've been a very naughty girl, you know." The woman's tone was light, playful even. The blonde couldn't help but agree with it and nodded her head vigorously. "You ruined my plans, and that is something that can not be forgiven. But all has turned out all right in the end. I have a better plan, and this time it will be so much more fun…"

* * *

Lina woke with a start, the sharp taste of bile filling her mouth. She tried to remember what she had been doing last night, but it was all a blank. She can't have had that much to drink, she did like to sneak a glass of wine from time to time, but she was always careful to maintain a certain image. The only time she had been truly drunk was when she was seven and she and Usagi had snuck in the wine cellar, deciding that her daddy really wouldn't miss just one barrel. She had been so embarrassed when she learned she had puked all over one of the maids that she had sworn off alcohol until only recently. Even then, she only drank enough to be sociable but little enough that she never seemed to finish more than two glasses in an entire night.

But wait, now she remembered, she had been with Usagi yesterday… They had ice-cream… That's right, then Usagi left suddenly. That was annoying, yes, but not the first time it had happened. As a matter of fact, in the week since she had met her friend, it had happened a total of five times already.

But what then… She remembered making her chauffer stop and let her off somewhere… But where…

She thought of calling her chauffer to get the full story from him, but something made her decide against it. It would be embarrassing to actually admit not remembering what had happened. Better for the servants to think that whatever she had done last night had been completely under control than have them questioning her judgment.

Lina rolled over in her bed and pulled the rope that hung beside it. Somewhere in the manor house a bell rang. Soon enough, a young woman with short, pale blond hair and wearing a traditional maid uniform stood in her doorway.

"Good morning Mistress." The woman curtsied formally to Lina, a carefully trained expression of politeness plastered across her rather plain features.

"Ah, Clair, timely as always I see. Is my bath ready?"

"Yes Mistress." Clair said, without hint of emotion in her silver eyes.

Lina nodded, expecting nothing less, and lifted her arms over her head, waiting expectantly. Clair removed the heiress' nightgown, folding it neatly in her arms. The maid then opened the door to an adjoining room and let Lina walk inside.

Lina sighed as she sank into the pleasantly warm water of the bath. Tilting her head back, she looked up through the glass ceiling. The pale dawn light of the True Sun had just begun to drown out the last of the stars. Titan was still clearly visible, waxing full in the west. The darkside of Earth's sister planet was also lit, burnished by the pale red light of the Solar System's second sun, long since set.

Lina sighed once again as she looked at Titan. How many times had she stared at the planet, wondering what her best friend was doing? Now Usagi was back, but nothing was the same. For Lina, no one could replace her best friend. Oh sure, she had friends a plenty. All Lina had to do was enter a room and everyone fell all over themselves to become friends with her. It wasn't like she minded the attention. Actually, she found it quite gratifying. But, it just wasn't the same. No one really wanted to get to know her, not like a real person. They all wanted to hang out with 'Lina Lovegood', starlet and heiress extraordinaire. Usagi was the only one who she had ever considered a true friend. But Usagi hadn't had the same problem. She had moved on, made new friends on Titan. And before Lina even knew Usagi was back, the pink haired girl was making friends.

Lina scowled as she thought of that mouse, Shion Blueriver. It wasn't that she had anything against the girl. It didn't really matter that the Mouse had less money than a cockroach. But why did the girl have to be so… so… so _there_. She was constantly near Usagi, almost as if her best friend had gained a red-headed shadow. And Usagi wouldn't stop trying to get them to be _friends_. Like that was ever going to happen. But even that could be tolerated. What Lina couldn't stand was that Usagi and her pet shadow were sharing some sort of secret. She would catch them whispering in dark corners together, talking to each other in odd phrases. Then, there were those times like last night. Usagi would drop everything and run off to God knows where. She never let Lina come with her, or even accepted her help but just dashed off without another word. Yet Lina never missed Shion quietly accompanying her out.

Lina stood in frustration, water cascaded from her long blond hair and athletic frame as fire flashed in her eyes. What secret were those two hiding! How could Usagi trust that, that _Mouse_, but not Lina!

*Cough*

Lina spun, one hand going across her chest, the other reaching for something in the pocket of a skirt she wasn't wearing. Clair stood at the edge of the bath, a towel draped over her arm. Her face was completely expressionless as always. Lina blushed, knowing the maid-servant had seen her sudden display of emotion.

"Done with your bath, Mistress?"

"Yes Clair," she said, getting out of the water and holding both of her arms away from her side. "You may dry me now."

"Of course, Mistress."

The rest of her morning preparations were done in their customary silence, that was, until Lina notice the clothes that had been laid out for her.

"Clair what is this?" Lina said, an edge of temper entering her voice.

"Your formal wear, Mistress." Clair replied in her customary monotone

"I can see that Clair, but what is it doing here?"

"Mistress, I was informed that you would be going to the Diet Building today. I assumed…"

The Diet Building was the structure which housed Earth's government. It towered on the edge of the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, officially a city unto itself. Lina's mother often went there to solicit the government for favors and contracts, or else attend various formal dinners with other influential individuals. In recent years she had taken to bringing Lina with her.

"You assumed wrong. My school uniform will suffice."

"As you wish, Mistress, but I shall have to inform Mrs. Lovegood." Clair's expression and voice did not change in the slightest as she bowed her head to Lina.

Lina's eyes flashed at the reminder that Clair had been _given_ to her by her mother.

"I'm not going there on business but for a school field trip." Lina said, containing her ire. I am surprised that you would make such a mistake. Clair, when was your last check up? Perhaps there is a problem with your neural synapses."

"I shall schedule an appointment with the Professor." Clair bowed her head even lower.

"Good, now get my school uniform and put this away, you've wasted enough time already."

"As you wish."

Lina sighed, knowing that even if Clair did see the Professor, she would still tell her mother about the change in attire. Realians may look like humans, act like humans, and even be made largely of the same stuff as humans, but they weren't really. They were developed in Vector's laboratories, each specially crafted for a specific task. They all are given certain directives when 'born' to be obeyed implicitely. Clair had been given only one directive. She was to "Serve 'Febronia Citrine Lovegood' in all things and without reserve."

Clair was a 'gift' from Vector. One of the first of her kind, and the only one to be let out of their carefully controlled labs. It was a mark of how much they respected, and feared, her mother that they had given Clair to her. Still, Lina wished her mother had kept Clair, rather than setting her to spy on her daughter.

"Oh, and Clair," Lina said. The Realian paused in fastening her skirt to look up at her mistress' daughter. "Since it is a school fieldtrip, I will be going to school _first_. Please make sure Raki gets the right directions."

Clair merely bowed her head once more.

"Of course Mistress."

Lina took a final moment to inspect herself. She couldn't help nodding in approval. It had taken some time to teach Clair how Lina liked things, but now the heiress doubted if even she could have done a better job.

The hover limo was ready and waiting by the time Lina walked out her front door. Raki, her driver this week, was waiting with the door already open for her.

"School first, Mistress?"

Lina smiled at the man's open and cheerful face. She liked Raki, not just because he was better looking than that old fuss-pot George, but he always seemed to be laughing, like he found the whole world amusing. He was also the only servant that seemed to show his true emotions. Unlike the other servants, who all had carefully trained expressions of politeness just like Clair.

Once in the car, Lina found herself caught up in the man's almost jovial small talk and the trip to school passed by in a blur.

"Shall you be requiring my services again soon, Mistress Lina?" Raki asked as he guided her out of the limo.

"No Raki, just be back here at the usual time. The school has chartered an Air Bus for today's excursion and I shall be taking that to the Diet Building."

Raki's eyes twinkled at the thought of his mistress riding in something as mundane as a bus.

"As you wish. I hope you have a pleasant day, Miss Lina."

As Lina took her first appraising look at the entrance of her school, she could not miss a flash of bubblegum pink off to one side. Even from behind a tree Usagi's bright hair was still clearly visible.

Lina strode purposefully across the plaza but slowed as she neared the tree. She had caught a glimpse of red and knew that her friend was having another one of her whispered conversations with her mousey shadow.

Determined to finally find out what it was they were hiding, Lina stepped softly as she could up to the tree and sheltered behind it.

"…seen again last night…" That was the Mouse, even quieter than usual.

"What! But that can't be…" Usagi, just like her friend to remember only halfway through that she was supposed to keep her voice down.

"…beastmen…Kemen…black suit…Senshi…" The mouse, but what was she saying? Her voice was so soft that Lina could only make out every fourth word…

"Yo!"

Lina's hair frizzed out as she spun to face the boy who had snuck up behind her.

Katan smirked at Lina's startled reaction. She flushed in embarrassment. To think, a Lovegood had been caught eavesdropping. Katan leaned toward her and she went as red as the Mouse's hair. His hand reached out and he tugged a lock of pink hair.

After a painfully high-pitched squeal, Usagi's head poked out from around the tree. "Katan! How many times have I told you… Lina! What are you doing here? Why didn't you say something?"

Lina shot a glare at Katan but recovered fast and smiled a dazzling smile at her best friend. She waved her hand airily, "Oh, I just wanted to surprise you, that's all. But Katan here," and she glared at the boy again, "beat me to it."

"I see…"

Lina shot a quick look at the red head's barely audible murmur. Sometimes that girl was just too sharp.

Lina's laugh was slightly false as she tossed her hair over one shoulder, dismissing the bespectacled girl.

"Anyway," Katan said, giving all three of them an odd look. "You girls had better head off to your homerooms. The teachers want to take attendance before we leave."

Usagi stuck her tongue out at Katan's back, but Lina could've sworn he had winked at her before sauntering off towards the school.

That boy needed to be taught a lesson, Lina thought to herself, and she wanted to be the one to give it to him.

* * *

A half an hour later and Lina was wishing she had let Raki drive her straight to the Diet Building. The Air Bus, a silly name for what was only an oversized hover-car, was cramped. Not to mention it smelled like the entire football team after a big game. She didn't even get her own seat, instead she had to share it with the Mouse. It had been Usagi's idea. She had probably thought it would bring them closer together. Well, we may close enough to rub elbows, but if Usagi thinks me smelling her cheep perfume will make us friends, she's mistaken. At least Usagi was paying for her matchmaking. She had to share a seat with that Katan boy and was not looking all too pleased about it.

Lina sighed and looked for something to occupy herself on this interminable ride. It never took this long in the jet. The Mouse was reading something on an outdated e-notebook. A sticker on one side declared it as property of the Furinkan High Library. Lina snorted in contempt. The girl couldn't even afford her own notebook. Why did the school even let her in?

Her eyes went back to Usagi. Her best friend was getting flustered as the boy next to her cheerfully chatted on. Her cheeks had puffed out in the way they had since they were children. A cute gesture, yet it never succeeded in conveying her true anger.

Well, serves you right. You should have just sat next to me.

Lina stared out the window for a bit, watching the sky scrapers move slowly past. She sighed, and thought how much better they would look without tubes poking out in every direction. Really, why couldn't people just use hover-cars, they were far more convenient.

Her eye went back to the Mouse next to her. Of course, people like _her_ couldn't afford a hover-car. She couldn't even afford her own notebook. Lina looked at the device. The two-dimensional screen showed a hairy creature plowing through a group of policemen while carrying a crate on its back.

"Sailor Moon too late again, huh?"

The Mouse's head jerked back as if she had been slapped and looked at Lina in consternation. Lina was puzzled for a second until she realized she had spoken her thoughts out loud.

"Well, it's true isn't it?" Lina said, a little louder than she meant to be. "Just look at the title, 'Black Knights Raid Factory, Millions in Merchandise Stolen'. If Sailor Moon had actually been where she's supposed to be, it wouldn't have happened."

"It's not that simple…" The Mouse almost whispered.

"Like you would know." Lina scoffed, flicking her hair back over her shoulder. Sometimes people could be so ignorant. "Sailor Moon is a glory hound, plain and simple. She only shows up if there's enough of a crowd to notice her. I've seen her type a thousand times. There's no way she'd bother with a petty robbery like this."

"Petty?" The Mouse said. Oh, I could actually hear her that time. "The company lost millions of yen from the raid. How is that petty?"

"That's nothing to a corporation." She said, enlightening the girl who probably didn't comprehend the realities of business. "Their insurance will cover it easy. Sailor Moon wouldn't even turn her pretty little head."

Untrimmed red eyebrows furrow. Wow, she actually getting angry, must be a fan or something. Figures.

"Don't believe me? Just look at that video. No holo option and the picture quality isn't even that good. Some worker too poor to afford a real phone probably shot it. Like Sailor Moon would show up for _that_."

"T-That, that's… how can you…" The girl is actually trembling, and she once thought the girl had a spine?

"Face it, Sailor Moon's no hero, just a self obsessed little girl."

*Smack*

Lina was stunned and she touched the side of her face, still not believing what just happened.

"Don't talk about things you don't understand!" The redhead was yelling at her, tears of rage in her eyes. "Everyone's not… not like _you_!"

"Like me?" Lina said, anger getting the better of her, causing her voice to rise. "What do you know about me!"

"Know? You're Lina Lovegood!" The girl's voice was loud enough to carry to the other students. Even the teacher up front had turned in her seat. "Your life is plastered across every blog and news program there is! What's there not to know?"

"You think-!" Lina said, so angry that she was unable to finish the sentence. This _Mouse_ assumed like everyone else that all her life was TV shows and caviar. None of them realized what it really meant to be a Lovegood. They never had to deal with the death threats and angry letters. They didn't get swarmed by people every time they stepped out their front door or had to spend hours in self defense classes so they could protect themselves from perverted teachers. There were times when Lina wished she had been born to any other family. Even if it meant having to check out e-notebooks from the school library.

"Shion…" Usagi's timid voice broke the sudden silence. "Lina's life hasn't been all that easy…"

Lina winced, she had always been taught not to show her weakness. But Usagi would understand. She would understand the hardships that came with being a Lovegood. She had even been there for some.

"Not that easy?" The redhead's voice was quieter now, but still perfectly audible. "When you and I both know there are things which no one should endure?"

"Shion…" Usagi's voice was full of sympathy as she reached across the aisle to put her hand on the redhead's shoulder. The Mouse clutched at Usagi's hand as a tear caused her cheep eyeliner run down her face.

* * *

Lina spent the rest of the ride in silence. She could hear the whispering of the other students and knew the whole thing would be up on the net by morning. The Mouse should be grateful to Lina, she would become a star overnight.

As Lina stepped off the bus she took a moment to look up. The Diet Building towered overhead, all stone pillars and sweeping archways, rising up from the smog to rest its great spired head in the clouds. She he had seen the structure before of course, but the architecture was still impressive. It had been disappointing to realize all that marble was just for show. It's not actually possible to make something this tall out of mere stone. But, and here she took a moment to marvel at the sight, it never failed to awe its visitors. Appropriate for the building that housed the governing body that presided over the world.

"Lina-chan…" Usagi said tentatively. Her red-haired shadow was hiding a tear streaked face behind Usagi's bright pink hair.

Lina smiled encouragingly at her best friend, trying to reassure her that there were no hard feelings between them. And there weren't, not as far as Usagi was concerned. The Mouse however… Well, Lina would just have to drop it, for now.

"Lina-chan," Usagi said again, more confidently this time. "I was wondering if you knew where a bathroom is. Shion…"

Of course, the Mouse. Lina glanced at the redheaded girl. Well, Usagi did have a point. She couldn't go walking through the most important building in the world looking like that. It would give the school a bad reputation.

"It's this way." She said, brushing her hair back over her shoulder as she turned to lead the way.

Lina stood outside the door of the single person bathroom with Usagi as the Mouse went in to wash her face. Usagi was clearly uncomfortable with the whole episode. She just stood there, fidgeting with a strand of pink hair.

"I-I'm sorry Lina-chan…" Usagi said, not quite meeting the blonde's eyes. Lina felt some regret at seeing how the fight had upset her best friend. She supposed she would have to do something to make things up with the Mouse before the trip was over.

"Shion's a good person, really." Usagi continued. "She's not normally like that…"

"I know, right? It took me totally by surprise!" Lina said, trying to act cheerful. "Who'd have thought she had it in her to slap me!"

Usagi's hands flew to her mouth in shock.

"She hit you? Are you ok Lina-chan?"

"It's no big deal." Lina said, waving her hand in dismissal. "I'd just like to know what set her off. I was just telling her how Sailor Moon couldn't care less about what happened to people and was just doing stuff for the attention. Then she…"

Lina stopped as she saw the expression on her friend's face. It was as if her cat had just told her that her parents were dead.

"You… don't really think that… Do you?" Usagi said, almost whispering.

"Of course!" Lina said, not willing to back down, even though she could see what it was doing to her friend. "If she really cared, she'd be out there right now. She'd find that mad man and stop him!"

"It's not like that! I… Sailor Moon can't just… It's not like anyone knows where he lives…"

"Then she should be out there trying to find him." Lina was tired of the conversation. Tired of Usagi's reaction. Tired of everyone believing the best of that stupid arrogant little girl called Sailor Moon. "But what's she doing instead? Probably just hiding out, going to school like everything's normal. Humph! She sounds like a hypocrite to me. If I ever found out who she was, I'd give her a piece of my mind, I can tell you that!"

Lina only saw a trailing strand of pink hair as the bathroom door opened, then slammed shut behind her only real friend in the world. Lina stood there, confused. What had she said? She had seen Usagi was getting upset, but she still didn't know what she had done.

"Usagi-chan…" Lina said, tentatively approaching the door. She could hear sobs coming from the other side.

"I'm sorry Usagi-chan, don't cry…" Lina was at a loss as for what she could do.

"Just talk to me, tell me what's wrong…" Lina pleaded.

The door opened a crack and Lina could see her friend curled up in a corner, face buried in her hands. The door clicked shut and Lina looked down at the shorter, red-haired girl in front of her.

"Is- is Usagi ok?" Lina said, hating to have to ask the bespectacled girl. "Why is she so upset, I don't know what I said."

"Usagi…" The redhead said carefully. "She'll be all right, she's tougher than she looks. But she needs a bit of time."

The girl didn't need to tell Lina about _her_ Usagi. She knew already how tough her friend could be.

"Ok, but does she need to talk to me? I want to apologize." Lina wasn't sure what she'd be apologizing for, but this was Usagi, she had to try.

"No, no… It's all right. I'm sure she understands you didn't mean to hurt her." The Mouse said, sounding more mature than ever before. "But I think it would be best if you'd go on ahead of us. It will be a while before she calms down."

"A-alright." Lina said, hating to leave her friend, but not seeing what else she could do. "But I wish I knew what I said…"

A flash of pain crossed the girl's face.

"It's not something that I think I should tell you."

That got Lina mad. What couldn't this _Mouse_ tell her? Usagi was _her_ friend after all!

Lina just sighed as she turned and walked away. If Usagi wouldn't tell Lina directly, then the girl really shouldn't say anything. But Lina really wished her friend would just _talk_ to her. They had never had any secrets before, but now… It really wasn't fair of her to blame the Mouse, but she couldn't help thinking that Usagi was trusting a girl she had known for less than a month over Lina, whom she had known since they were both babies.

Lina turned a corner without even thinking and stopped. The hallway she was in was had gone dark. She turned around and saw the corridor behind her was still lit, with people going about their daily routine. She turned back around to see what could have caused this one hallway to be unlit and froze. Two spots of light had appeared in the gloom, red and beady. And, from somewhere in the darkness, she could hear the faint sound of heavy breathing.

* * *

Usagi knew she should talk to Lina. But, she had thought… She had thought that if she could have told anyone that she was Sailor Moon, then it would have been Lina, her best friend. But Lina hated her! Well, not _her_ not _Usagi_, not exactly, but Sailor Moon. And weren't they really the same person. The worst part was, Usagi wasn't so sure Lina was wrong to hate her.

Shion closed the door softly and walked over to Usagi. Gently, she pulled Usagi's hands away from her face and wiped her eyes with a faded handkerchief.

"Blow." She said, pressing the handkerchief against Usagi's nose.

Usagi obeyed and blew.

"Better now?" Shion asked.

Usagi nodded. Then, unable to help herself, she flung her arms around the slightly smaller girl.

"Is it true?" Usagi asked her partner. "Are we really not doing all we can? Is it wrong to be going to school while Zero is still at large?"

"We're doing everything we can." The redhead said, patting Usagi's back in a half awkward gesture of comfort. The girl really wasn't comfortable with being hugged, but Usagi wasn't ready to let her go.

"Are we really?" Usagi said, the doubts that constantly plagued her coming to the surface. "Isn't it selfish to go to school like nothing has changed? We should be out there, searching for him, before more people are hurt." She was thinking of Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Venus now, both of whom were still missing.

"You go out every night, you hardly sleep, and you can't even keep up with your school work. I've seen your latest tests, if this goes on you're going to flunk out. You've given up everything you can to help others. And, as for those few hours you let yourself have to go to school, you spend the entire time with your head on your desk, fast asleep."

Usagi was surprised the quiet girl knew about her schoolwork. She had tried to hide it from Shion, knowing she would worry. But then, the girl saw everything, even if she never said much about it.

"It's still not enough." Usagi said, holding Shion a little more tightly than before and ignoring the fact that the redhead was starting to squirm a little. "Everything we've done still isn't enough. We still haven't managed to change anything. We still haven't caught _him_."

"I'm monitoring the net 24/7, but we can't catch everything. We just have to believe that it will get better and try our hardest. That's all we can really do."

Usagi sniffed and nodded. However, she kept hold of Shion for another few minutes, to the girl's immense discomfort. Sniffing, Usagi eventually got up and washed her face.

Static crackled and the soft music that had been playing in the background was cut off.

"Due to some unfortunate circumstances," a man's perfectly calm, almost monotone voice said, "we will have to request that all visitors leave the building. Please follow the signs marked as 'Exit' and walk in an orderly fashion. All employees are to head to their assigned emergency positions. This is not a drill. I repeat…"

The two girls looked at each other and Usagi's hand drifted up to her chest to touch the golden ornament pinned there.

Shion shook her head quietly and looked to the corner of the room where a small camera was mounted on the wall. Usagi understood. They couldn't transform where they'd be seen or everyone would know who they were. They had decided long since that that would be more trouble than it was worth.

Still without saying anything, Shion walked to the door and slowly eased it open, then shut it again as a gout of heat and flame rushed into the room. Both girls backed up as they saw the door go red hot, the metal beginning to melt in the center.

Usagi thought she heard her partner shout as the redhead pulled her to the ground. A pillar of fire lanced over their heads and broke itself on the tiled wall behind them. The two girls rolled together under the sink and Usagi banged her elbow painfully on a pipe. What was left of the door was smashed off its hinges and a monster walked in.

The creature didn't enter the room quickly but took its time, flicking out its tongue and swinging its head this way and that. It was about the size of a crocodile but its body resembled that of a gecko. But the thing that made you know that this creature was not natural was the fact that its entire body had been covered in flame. If you've seen baked Alaska then you'd have some idea of how this creature looked. Only, the flames showed no signs of dimming and when it looked at the two girls, huddled beneath a porcelain sink, they could see that its eyes were missing, replaced by a black void.

The firelizzard opened its jaws and Usagi could see an inferno burning in its belly. Usagi glanced at her friend and could see the same determination on her face. This wasn't the time to be hiding. Once again, danger threatened and the world needed the Sailor Senshi.

"MOON PRISM POWER, MAKE-UP!"

"MERCURY POWER, MAKE-UP!"

Usagi felt a rush of familiar power as her old cloths vanished and her Senshi uniform materialized itself. She had once again become the defender of love and justice, Sailor Moon. Usagi wasted no time but just called out her attack.

"Moon Tiara Action!"

The monster was split neatly down the middle by the circle of golden light. But, instead of turning immediately into dust like the beastmen did, it exploded.

Sailor Moon felt herself flung against the wall as heat and flame rushed over her. The tile at her back caved and she found herself looking at the ceiling of another room. Dust and embers settled about her and it was a while before she could extricate herself from the smashed tubing and bits of tile. Coughing, she had to steady herself as her thoroughly addled brain caused the room to pitch and roll. Looking around, she saw a blue skirt and a pair of legs struggling to get out of a crushed water heater.

Stumbling through the wreckage, she bent down and pulled the girl to her feet. Mercury wobbled a bit on her heals, the girl never had gotten used to the things while Usagi now had no trouble even as she stood on top a pile of debris.

The two girls looked back at the small bathroom. It was now a charred mess with water fountaining out from odd places. You couldn't even tell where the toilet had once been. Usagi knew she shouldn't have survived the explosion but when she looked back at Sailor Mercury she could see the redhead's glasses had remained unbroken. Usagi still couldn't understand how they could take a hit like that, but Zero managed toss them around like rag dolls.

"They didn't use to explode…" Sailor Moon said, stating the obvious.

"No…" Mercury replied, still sounding shaky. "I didn't get a good scan of it either. Let's hope they're not all like that."

There didn't appear to be an exit to this particular room so the two waded through the rubble and staggered back out into the main hall from the ruined bathroom.

The scene in the main hall reminded Usagi of the Tolar Tower, with one small difference. Among the beastmen tearing through security drones, were several of the 'firelizards' like the one they had just detonated in the bathroom. All of whom were doing the best they could to turn the building into an inferno as they shot pillars of fire from open jaws.

Off to one side, Usagi could see a group of Knightmares. But, instead of actively engaging the beastmen or firelizards they were protecting groups of people escaping into pills and hovervehicles. The beastmen were so preoccupied with shredding the drones that they ignored the people. Usagi caught sight of a uniform she recognized and sighed in relief.

"There's so many!" Usagi said, having to shout over all the noise. "What should we do?"

"Just find Zero!" Mercury shouted back to her. "If we can stop him, then it's a good chance the beastmen will just go away!"

"But he could be anywhere! How do we find him?"

A firelizard got too close to a guarding Knightmare and the mech let loose with a burst of automatic fire. The resulting explosion shook the floor and Shion had to lean on Sailor Moon for balance. When the smoke cleared they could see the Knightmare had lost an arm.

"He'll be where he can get the most attention!" Mercury shouted up at her. "Where can he go and make sure the whole world would notice?"

Usagi had to think about that. Which was kind of hard, considering all the monsters trying their hardest to wreck the room around her. Also, she didn't really know much about the Diet Building. It wasn't exactly a hot topic on Titan.

"Uhmmm, I don't knowww!" Usagi whined. Another explosion rocked the floor. A firelizard was wandering up to them, obviously wanting to know if Senshi was indeed flammable.

"Bubble Spray!"

A focused stream of bubbles hit the creature which immediately turned into steam. When the fog cleared, a large black lizard was lying still on the floor.

"I wasn't sure that would work." Shion said, sounding a little proud of herself.

"Is it dead?" Usagi asked, not wanted to get closer to check it out.

"No." Mercury said in the confident voice she only got in uniform. "I'm getting a better reading on it now. It's still alive, but I think it's asleep. Wait…" The creature had begun to stir and Mercury gave it another blast of bubbles.

"They don't stay down long…" Usagi said doubtfully.

"Apparently not." Mercury said, not sounding too concerned. "But with this we might be able to make it to Zero without being blown through every wall along the way."

"I was thinking about that." Usagi said, amazed at how easy it was to talk with a giant demon lizard asleep in front of her. "What's that place where all those government people gather and Prime Minister… Oh, wait, that's not what he's called here. What was his name…"

"You mean the President?" Shion prompted as a Knightmare set of another firelizard and the building shook.

"Yes that's him!" Usagi said, pleased to remember. "You know that room with all the flags and stuff and he talks about the 'state of the conference' or something."

"The State of the Confederacy." Shion corrected. "He usually gives that during a joint session with both the House and Senate. You're talking about the House Chamber, that's where the meeting is normally held."

At this point Mercury had to stop talking in order to give the firelizard another spray and knock out a second firelizard that had approached. For Sailor Moon's part, she had noticed some of the beastmen were getting tired of smashing battle drones and had decided to take an interest two girls in sailor uniforms standing in a wrecked doorway. One toss of her tiara later and they had all turned to dust. But now they really had to get moving. The other monsters had noticed a good two dozen of their friends had just been dusted.

"Well?" Sailor Moon asked her partner. "Do you think that's where he is? I don't even know where to find it!"

"Wait! I'm pulling up a map right now."

* * *

Sailor Venus looked at her mistress' husband and couldn't help but feel a sense of pride, standing next to such a great man. He was already an emperor in her mind. The man hadn't even needed to say anything. He had appeared in the middle of the chamber in a torrent of shadow as all the great men ran.

Now, she stood on his left, her mistress on his right, and beyond her was the swordsman. He had decided to join her mistress as well. No longer would he stoop to chasing after Sailor Moon like a dog. As evidence of his change of allegiance, he had switched from somber black to purest white. Sailor Venus, on the other hand, was now in starkest black. It was her small way of showing her mourning for her dead brother. She kept the orange, though, a reminder to Sailor Moon of who it was that had finally come for vengeance.

Zero stood proudly at the podium of leaders and laughed, addressing the world.

"You never thought you'd see the day, did you." His voice was utterly confident. This was a victory speech and he knew it. "I'm sure you thought someone would catch me. The police, the army, FBI, CIA, or perhaps even… Sailor Moon?"

He allowed himself a little chuckle at that last name. The black suited Senshi had to agree, the idea of Sailor Moon stopping him was laughable.

"But here I am, at the center of your government and I'm done playing games. There will be no more demands, no more elaborate plans, no more hostages… Today, I declare war on the world! The world that has denied me once again of what should rightfully have been mine!" The last sentence was shouted from behind the dark mask. Sailor Venus' heart quickened in response.

"To show that this is no bluff, but that I am in deadly earnest, I will have you watch the seat of your government crumble around me. The fire of its destruction will be the signal of the old regime's passing and the beginning of a new empire! Revived from the past! Greater than ever before!"

The floor rocked with the power of Zero's voice and the orange skirted Senshi found she was having trouble keeping her feet. Then, the large double doors to the chamber flew off their hinges to crash in the center of the room.

Sailor Moon stood at the top of the steps, smoke and fire billowing behind her as her battle streak face gazed down on Zero, the fire of purest passion in her eyes. It was as if Artemis, the goddess of the hunt herself, had come down to Earth in order to pass judgment on mere mortals. For that one moment, Sailor Venus could not imagine opposing her and part of herself asked why she even should.

"Ah, if it isn't the would be hero, Sailor Moon." Zero's mocking voice brought her mind back on track. This was for her brother!

There was the sound of coughing and the red-haired, blue skirted Senshi stumbled out of the smoke. Sailor Moon was forced to abandon her regal goddess pose to catch the girl before she fell.

The black suited Senshi smiled contemptuously to herself. She was going to enjoy what was about to happen.

"I see you've brought your sidekick!" Zero said cheerfully.

"Zero!" The pink haired girl shouted, trying in vain to regain her regal pose. "In the name of the Moon, I will stop your reign of terror!"

Her mistress laughed girlishly at the ridiculous statement. Draping herself on her husband, she planted a kiss on his dark visor.

"Have fun, dear. I _don't_ think you'll be needing me." The green haired beauty said. "We'll make sure the finale is ready by the time you're done."

"You'd better hurry." Her husband responded lovingly. "This won't take long."

With a second parting kiss, her mistress waved to the doomed Senshi and vanished in swirl of shadows along with the white-clothed swordsman.

Zero stood for a while, staring at the spot where his wife had vanished. Then, he shook his head and sat down in a plush chair, resting his booted feet on the podium.

"Well?" He said to the sailor suited warrior who still hadn't moved from the top of the steps. "Weren't you going to stop me, in the name of the _Moon_?"

Sailor Moon took a step forward, hand reaching to her tiara. She didn't seem to know how to handle Zero's laid back manners and looked to her companion for help. But the other girl just seemed deep in thought.

'They know they're beat.' Said a dark voice in her head.

It was right, she thought. They knew they couldn't defeat her master and didn't know what to do.

"I'll tell you what." Zero said. "I'm a sporting man. If you can beat my subordinate here," one black clad arm gestured in her direction, "then I'll call the whole thing off. I'll go home and pretend this whole thing never happened. Think of a new way to get my message across. What do you say?"

Sailor Moon took another step down towards the chamber floor. Sailor Venus took this as her cue and leapt into the air. Looking down at the pathetic excuses for Senshi, she called out her attack.

"Crescent Beam!"

The Moon princess dove behind a desk, narrowly dodging the yellow beam. The black suited Senshi landed not long after her attack and swung a viscous backhand at the bespectacled face of the second Senshi.

The girl was quicker than she had thought and managed to get her arms up before the blow hit. Still, the orange skirted Senshi had put enough force in her blow to send the smaller Senshi careening through several rows of furniture.

"Wait! Sailor Venus, we don't want to hurt you! We aren't your enemies!" White gloved arms had wrapped around her from behind in a surprisingly strong grip that pinned her arms to her side.

But the hold was one of an amateur. She jerked her blonde head back and was rewarded with a satisfying squeal of pain. She then proceeded to rake her heel down the girl's instep, causing the pink haired amateur's hold to loosen just enough. Grabbing the white gloved arm she pulled the Moon Princess across her hip and over her shoulder.

Sailor Venus had barely needed the leverage of the throw with her enhanced strength. She was pleased to see pink pigtails stream out as the girl flew through the air.

'Now finish her.' Said the voice in her head. Lifting a finger, she pointed it at the still airborne Sailor Moon. It was a perfect chance, no way of dodging, but she hesitated.

'Think of your brother." The voice urged and images of that soot covered body lying outside locked crystal doors came back to her.

With a cry of rage, she called out her attack.

"CRESCENT BEAM!"

Something hit her from the side and she watched in a white fury as her attack veered off target. Someone, probably that other Senshi, the bubble girl, had thrown something at her. On further inspection, she noticed the smashed remains of a desk littered around her.

"You!" The dark Senshi shrieked as she jabbed her finger at the redhead.

But the girl was one step ahead of her and had taken cover behind a stone pillar before she could call out her attack. A thick mist began to spill from behind the pillar. A smokescreen! The blonde spun back to where she had last seen Sailor Moon. If she lost sight of her main target now, the coward might never show her face again and she'd loose her chance at revenge.

Too late. The Princess had hidden herself and the fog was rolling in fast. The room had gotten cold and she was soon straining her eyes to make out the shapes of furniture in the blanket of white.

'You see?' said the voice in her head. 'This is how they've always worked. Talking about truth and justice as they skulk in the shadows. Creeping out to save themselves whenever things get tough.'

Sailor Venus let out a cry of rage and frustration as she attacked everywhere at random. Yellow beams split the fog in wide arcs and crashed into expensive furnishings. But the fog never let up for long.

The enraged Senshi slipped on a step, cracking her head against stone. Suddenly she could think again. The fog hadn't lifted yet, that meant that Sailor Moon and her sidekick were probably still in the room. But if they were, they hadn't tried to attack her. If they weren't after her then…

"Master Zero!"

The girl spun in the direction of the podium. Sure enough, she could make out a faint golden glow just starting to form.

"Crescent Beam!"

Her attack hit the glowing spot in a burst of energy. The black suited Senshi could hear a cry of surprise and dismay. Orange skirt flaring out behind her, she pounced on the unprepared Moon Senshi. This close and the mist didn't matter. Venus laid into the girl, pummeling every part of her body she could reach. With each thud of skin against skin, the memory came flashing back to her. A red sky. A crystal palace. That one, small word, both his first and last. The tiny hand, reaching for a mother neither of them would ever see again. The ash. The coughing. The screaming for help. The locked doors.

White gloves had her in a headlock. The sidekick. Somewhere, someone was laughing insanely in a dark, deep voice, but she didn't care. The black suited Senshi just pointed her finger over her shoulder and called out her attack.

There was a scream of pain and blood spattered across her shoulder. She didn't even bother to look. The mist had cleared and she could now see the once great Moon Princess lying at her feet. The girl didn't look so pretty anymore.

'Finish her.' This time she hadn't needed the voice's prompting. She pointed her finger straight at the girl's heart.

"W-why?" The word was a quiet, half broken thing yet it echoed in the empty chamber.

"Why?" Sailor Venus said, not quite believing the girl even needed to ask. "You Killed My Brother, That's **WHY**!"

"IN THE NAME OF JUPITER, I SUMMON REI-SYOU!"[1]

Sailor Venus felt something hit her from behind. Her whole body went numb and convulsed as a voice like thunder echoed and died. What had happened? Had another ally they didn't know about come to save Sailor Moon? No! What about her vengeance! She couldn't let it end here!

Zero had jumped to his feet and was roaring at the interruption. Fire had finally reached the chamber and was ringing the walls. Smoke and tiny embers were starting to fill her vision, reminding her once again of the night when what had been most precious was taken from her.

"In The Name Of Jupiter, I Summon Fuu-Yao-Chi-Chuu!"[2]

The voice thundered out another strange attack as Zero let loose a storm of lightning. The girl could feel some of the numbness ebbing and was able to lift her head. A giant spider had appeared behind her master as energy crackled in every direction. The large creature was on his back, trying to wrap him in its web. The helmeted man was clearly struggling as energy sparked in his hands only to dissipate almost immediately.

A large figure had made an incongruously soft landing next to her. She could move her arm a little but her throat was still tight and she couldn't make her mouth obey her. She tried to get better look at the man as he stooped and threw something over his shoulder.

Heavy footsteps. Her master was screaming, but there was a note of triumph in the sound. The man bent down near her. She could see a bit of his face, but the only thing she really noticed was a dark green and gold embroidered mask that covered his eyes. The blonde found she could swallow at last and inched her hand in the man's direction.

"Save… Venus…" Said a small but urgent voice

"Can't, Princess." The man rumbled. "I've only got two arms and the place is rigged to blow."

"No… you must…" But the rest of the Moon Princess' order was muffled as the man threw her over his unoccupied shoulder.

The black suited Senshi slowly raised her finger to the man's back.

"Crescent…"

As the man rose to his feet, Venus almost thought she could see a faint outline of gold around his broad shoulders.

"Bea…"

A flash of memory. A dark silhouette standing over her lit by the faintest trace of gold. He had been there that night. With fire in the sky and ash covering the ground. He had come. His rage had been terrible to behold and the crystal doors had shattered. She had never thought he had it in him. Everyone knew he hadn't gotten his mother's power, but no one suspected just how far he had gone to compensate for that.

He had carried her into the palace, a child in his other arm. He must have rousted out every healer in the palace. He stood next to her bed and cried as he told her that he had been too late to save her brother. Tears fell like rain on her sheets as he lamented not being there sooner. The man had vowed to kill the fool who had locked the gate even as he hugged the child in his own arms closer to his heart.

The sound of glass shattering brought her back to the present. The man stood at a smashed window, a Senshi slung over each shoulder.

'No!' Sailor Venus wanted to shout. 'Take me with you!' But her throat had clenched tight once more and she couldn't get the words past her lips.

"In the name of Jupiter, I summon Shou-Rin!"[3]

The man's voice rumbled to her across the room and she knew her chance was gone.

'You see?' The dark voice was back in her mind and sounding almost smug. 'They left you after all. They don't really care about anyone else, only themselves.'

Tears flowed from her eyes as the three people who could have saved her from the darkness in her heart vanished from sight.

A shadow passed over her and she could see Zero standing over head. He was completely motionless, helmeted head turned in her direction, watching the tears run down her face. She expected him to hit her, to blame her for everything that had gone wrong, to punish her for the weakness of wanting to go with the enemy. He did none of these things.

Bending down and gathered the blonde girl up in his strong arms. He was gentle, and held her as a father would his child. Resting her head against his chest, she was surprised to feel the warm steady beat of his heart.

The man took a step forward and the shadows rose to meet them. Soon, she was being carried down a corridor of darkness. The one who held her was barely distinguishable from the surroundings. It was as if she floated in an endless abyss.

* * *

Sailor Venus looked at the man standing next to her. Firelight reflected off his dark visor as he watched the Diet Building burn, its flames billowing from under archways and rising to scorch the clouds. Rather than reflecting light, his black cloak seemed to draw it in, giving the man an aura of shadow. Even the Red Sun, setting just behind him, was diminished by his presence.

A soft chuckle echoed from inside his helmet. The sound could have frozen marrow, yet it was tinged with a kind of regret. He spoke, slowly, and his voice was such that she was compelled to listen.

"It is a poor consolation." He said as sirens sounded in the distance. "If this had been her palace… If it had been her fighting me and not her daughter…"

The helmet turned in the orange skirted Senshi's direction and she could feel the power of his gaze upon her.

"It was not I who cast off the Moon. No… She did that herself." His tone was bitter, the firelight no longer glinting from his dark helm.

"_To save the Earth._ Is what she would have said." And his voice mocked that noble sentiment.

"Oh, the Earth was saved, oh yes. Four million dead, but she was always willing to let others make the sacrifice. Not…" and now his tone contained a wry humor. "Not that their lives would have particularly mattered to me either."

The man was silent for a long time after that. The dark Senshi watched as red light of an emergency hover flicked across his visored face. In the distance she could hear the hiss as gouts of water crashed down on dying flame. The Red Sun had sunk behind the nearest skyscrapers.

"This land should have been mine…" His voice had turned truly black and he didn't look at her this time, only stared across at the charred stone of building. The Senshi could feel the emotion flowing off him in waves. A mixture of malice, envy, and regret.

"I was next in line for the throne. Not that anyone much cared about that sort of thing. Japan had long since been _civilized_ by the rest of the world. But I had plans…" His voice faded off into memory before coming back strong. "I had discovered something, you see. A power, locked in the family's blood. I would use it and reclaim my birthright!"

Again there was silence as his last sentence echoed and died. A red light still tinged the sky and the first stars had yet to appear. When he spoke again his voice was twisted. His sinisterly smooth words distorted by a rage that he barely held in check.

"Then she came. With her friends and her _love_ and **justice**. The world welcomed her! They called her a hero and followed her without question! They _gave_ her what was rightfully mine! And when I opposed her, what did they do? They cast me out! Called me a villain and sealed me away with my wife! Condemning us to spend all eternity in a timeless grey void! The only comfort, a single window with which we could view all that they had denied us!"

The blonde haired Senshi felt a pang of sympathy the man, an emperor in her mind, if nowhere else. She felt like reaching out to him, but somehow knew he did not want comfort. Deep inside, a small voice gave a contemptuous harrumph, but she paid it no mind.

"But now…" and the man's deep voice rose, resounding off the surrounding towers. "Finally! The time has come when all seals are undone! And I shall have my kingdom…"

"And kill that woman's offspring while you're at it, right dear?" A woman had landed on the roof next to them, her green hair settled around her, leaving not a strand out of place. A soft tap sounded behind her and the black suited Senshi turned to see a young man in a white formal suit and black mask standing beside her. She knew his appearance should invoke some emotion, but could only think about how good he looked in white.

"Did you finish the preparations?" The dark voice snapped her attention back to the helmeted man.

"Of course, dear." The green haired woman said as she slipped her arms around her husband's. "I can guarantee it'll be quite a show."

"Good!" He said, and the anger was gone, replaced by triumph. "Watch! As the old makes way for the new!"

He raised one gloved hand to the sky, the first stars separating it from the darkness. In it was a device with but a single button. The Senshi felt an urge to knock it from his hand. But, before she could even determine where the strange desire had risen from, the man let out a roar of laughter and pressed the button.

The world trembled and the blonde stumbled in her heals. Black gloves steadied her. The white suited man had gripped her firmly, allowing her to witness the destruction the dark cloaked man had wrought.

The stone pillars of the Diet Building trembled under the shock of multiple explosions. For a moment, the tremors seemed to cease. Then, a cloud of dust and fire rose from the building's base as the pillars began to crumble. The whole structure was collapsing in on itself as bit by bit it crashed to Earth. The outer stone fell away quickest, revealing the skeleton of carbon tubing beneath. The Diet Building screamed out its last moments as what was left of it warped and bent, yielding to the slow demands of gravity.

Zero was laughing in maniacal joy as his wife smiled in pure pleasure. The two reveled in the last fragments of a once great building slowly becoming dust in the wind. Venus had to admit it was an impressive sight. Rescue hovers outlined where the building had once stood and a pillar of smoke rose to meet the clouds. But somewhere, somewhere deep inside her there was a small blonde girl that screamed in rage. Looking down, she couldn't help but notice that her swordsman's hand had curled in a vice like grip about the hilt of his thorny green blade.

* * *

Usagi found herself being carried lower and lower into the city. She had been slung over one of the man's shoulders while Sailor Mercury was draped over the other. Blood dripped freely from Mercury's face but she hadn't managed to get a better look at it.

The skateboard like creature that the man had summoned slowed as he leapt off of it and on to a balcony. Opening a door that didn't seem to be locked, the man stepped inside and turned on the lights. The first thing Usagi noticed was the black cat that had come to greet them. It had a crescent moon mark on its forehead.

The man nodded to the cat. He set Usagi as gently as he could on to one couch and Mercury on to the other. The cat jumped up next to her and rubbed her head against Usagi's face with a purr of concern.

"Luna?" Usagi asked dumbly, even the one word made her body ache. It couldn't be her cat, could it?

"It's me, Usagi-chan." The cat said in reply.

"B-but, how? Why?" Usagi asked, still not quite believing it.

The cat didn't answer immediately but decided to lick her fur into place before responding. The man walked into another room. Usagi could hear the rattle of dishes and sound of running water.

"I saw Zero's statement on TV and thought you could use some extra help." The cat finally said.

"But who is he? How do you know him? Why would he help us?" The questions flowed out of her mouth faster than she could think resulting in a stabbing pain from her battered ribs.

"Just calm down Usagi-chan and I'll explain." Her cat soothed her. "I met Juno, or Jupiter Knight as he was known in Crystal Tokyo, at the Tolar Tower. He had discovered Shion-chan even before I did."

What? Jupiter Knight? Why hadn't Luna mentioned something like this before? And Crystal Tokyo, where was that? Although, now that she thought about it, both names did sound familiar.

Jupiter Knight, or was it Juno, came back into the room with a tray in his hands. His mask was gone and his clothes had changed from the tattered black tuxedo he had been wearing into a normal office worker's clothes.

"Drink this." The man rumbled, putting a cup of herbal tea to Usagi's mouth. "It should speed the healing process. Though, with your magic, I'm sure you'll heal soon enough on your own."

"Mercury?" Sailor Moon asked, sipping a little of the bitter tea.

"Nothing I can do there." Juno sighed. "It's a miracle she's not dead, must be that Senshi magic protecting her. Pity about her eye."

Usagi was on her feet in an instant, ignoring the pain in her chest. Pushing past Juno, she fell at her friend's side. Mercury was pale and her glasses had been shattered. In the spot where her right eye should have been was a black mess. Blood still seeped out of an empty socket.

"H-how? When?" Usagi muttered. Then, the memory came back to her.

From the moment she had seen Zero standing behind the podium, Sailor Venus in black on his left and C.C. and Tuxedo Kamen in white on his right, she knew it was hopeless. Still, she had been prepared to try. When the two in white had left and Venus had attacked, she thought they might have a chance. The plan had formed in her mind as the orange skirted Senshi had tossed her across the room. The last two times they had defeated Zero had been by taking him by surprise. If they could do it again, then they might have a chance.

The plan was working, in the confusion of Venus' attacks and concealed by the mist, Usagi had positioned herself to strike in Zero's blind spot. But Sailor Venus had found them out. She had been hitting her faster than Usagi could see. Then, Mercury had come up behind Venus, putting the blonde into some sort of hold. Venus didn't even hesitate she just, just…

Usagi still didn't know why the girl had been working for Zero. Or why Tuxedo Kamen had left with C.C. This was the first time they had failed to protect the city and Usagi wonder how they had even managed up until now. And now, and now…

"Can… can it be healed?" Usagi desperately asked the big man standing over her.

"I don't know." His voice sounded flat, emotionless. "Senshi magic can heal most things, even re-grow some organs. But it can't do anything if you lose a limb. Something like an eye it's… Even if the eye does grow back, I doubt she'll ever be able to see properly out of it."

"Is there anything I can do?" Usagi said, clutching her friend's hand.

"If you had your full powers-"

"No, Usagi-chan." Luna broke in. "I'm afraid there's nothing more you can do for her."

Juno gave the cat a long look before he continued.

"There are some more modern options available." The big man said slowly. "A bionic eye, for instance."

"W-we… couldn't afford…" Usagi almost leapt in surprise at her friend's shaky voice. Mercury's good eye squinted up at her and the girl's fingers tightened around her own.

"I'd help pay, Shion-chan. After all it's my fault you were hurt!" Usagi was desperate to help her friend, but Shion just kept shaking her head.

"Y-you… don't… understand." Mercury said, trying to lift herself into a sitting position. "Even your family couldn't…"

"Lina-chan!" Usagi said, hurrying to help prop her friend up. "If I asked Lina, I'm sure she could afford it."

"Lina Lovegood?" Shion asked with a dry chuckle. Then she winced and slapped her hand to the socket of her eye which had begun to bleed again. "I really doubt _she_ would be willing to… Mr. Juno, is that you?" She asked, noticing the man for the first time.

"It's me, Ms. Blueriver." The man cut in before Usagi could defend the good nature of her childhood friend. "And it's just Juno, or Mr. Skybreaker if you have to, but I prefer Juno."

Shion actually smiled at that.

"Then you'll just have to call me Shion." Her voice was starting to sound stronger and Usagi breathed a sigh of relief. "But why are you here? What happened to the Diet Building?"

"It's gone, Shion-chan." Usagi said. "Zero destroyed it. I saw it crumble. If Juno here hadn't saved us, we would both be dead."

"Juno did?" Shion asked, evidently confused.

"Yep." Usagi said. "He's the Jupiter Knight, apparently."

"Jupiter Knight?" Shion was even more confused. "Does that mean he's the Senshi of Jupiter?"

"Not exactly," said the man. He was starting to glare at Luna as he said it. "How much do you two remember?"

"I blacked out before you arrived so not much…" Shion said. Usagi couldn't help but tremble as a look of pure rage came into Juno's eyes.

"Not that." Juno said sharply. "I mean about Crystal Tokyo. How much do you remember of your past lives?"

Both Shion and Usagi looked confused. The name Crystal Tokyo was familiar to her, but Usagi couldn't remember where she had heard it before.

"Are you talking about the Crystal Queen movement?" Shion asked, trying to appease the agitated man. "Those fanatics that believe in a legendary Goddess made of crystal that is reborn from age to age."

"Luna!" Juno shouted, his voice making a lamp tremble on its stand. "Have you told them nothing?"

"I thought it would be best for them to remember on their own." Luna said primly, unperturbed by the man towering over her.

"Cats!" Juno spat the word like a curse.

"That's your master talking." Luna said reproachfully.

"I'm beginning to think he was right." Juno said, taking a few breaths to calm himself down. "I suppose I'll have to tell them then."

"As you wish." Luna said, not sounding all that concerned.

The man sighed and sat down on one of his chairs. Usagi wasn't sure she liked this man, his temper had nasty habit of flaring up when you least expected it. Also, what kind of man didn't like cats?

"How to begin?" The man said, brushing his hair back. "There's so much to tell and, even though I remember much of my life, I wasn't the oldest of us, the second generation. There are some things I couldn't tell you, even if I did remember it perfectly." He stopped for a while, an expression of deep thoughtfulness on his face.

"I suppose I should start by telling you that none of us are from this time period." He began.

"But-" Shion said, but was cut off by a golden eyed glare.

"I'm not saying that you weren't born here." Juno continued. "Your parents are your real parents, and gave birth to you just like mine did. But they are not your only parents."

Usagi was confused. How could she have two sets of parents? It didn't make any sense.

"You are the reincarnation of warriors from the distant past and the children of warriors. Senshi, if you'd like to use a word from that time period." Juno said, and as he got into the rhythm of his tale, Usagi thought she could see memories playing across her mind. A crystal palace. A kind woman with long blonde hair. A tall, dark haired man in a tuxedo. The laughing face of man with a ponytail, wearing a red silk shirt and black pants.

"The Senshi," he continued, "protected and ruled over the Solar System. Each of them having been given a planet which it was their special charge to protect. And all of them answered to the Queen who ruled over the Moon and all its light shone upon."

"She was my mother." Usagi said instinctively.

"That's right." Juno said with a smile. "You are the Moon Princess. Or, at least, you are her reincarnation. Once you regain all of your memories you will be her in truth and have all the power she once had at her disposal."

"Then what does that make me?" Shion asked, a note of skepticism in her voice.

"You are Sailor Mercury, of course." Juno said with a half chuckle. "You were the daughter of the woman who ruled over Mercury. You may take after your father in looks, but your brain is every inch your mother's. She was the greatest scientist in the kingdom and responsible for the terraforming of the planets besides Earth."

Shion didn't look like the quite believed the man, but Usagi could see a flicker of recognition in her one good eye.

"I understand if you don't believe me." The big man said. "But, if you want proof, I only have to point to your powers. Still, who would believe in reincarnation in this day and age? Just wait though, before long your memories will start to trickle in. They'll come as dreams or vague flashes. I doubt you'll even remember most of them at first. Eventually, they will build up until this life will be the one that feels like a dream."

Usagi wasn't sure she liked the sound of that, being slowly transformed into a person she knew nothing about.

"What about you?" Shion said in defiance. "Who are you? And why didn't you help us at the Tolar Tower or afterwards? You knew I was Sailor Mercury before I did, didn't you?"

"Yes, I knew you were Sailor Mercury." Juno said, his voice dangerously low. "I've known who I am for fifteen years now. I don't know why I was born before both of you. In Crystal Tokyo, I was younger than either of you."

"But why didn't you-"

"I did! Ok!" Juno roared. "You didn't see it because I went ahead of you in the Tolar Tower, but the lower levels were swarming with beastmen. I got you to the control center, didn't I?"

"I… I had noticed all the dust but I thought…" Shion looked slightly chastened, but her empty eye socket had started to bleed again. "Why not after that? When Zero was defeated, why didn't you tell us?"

"I," Juno mumbled, "didn't think I would be of much help."

Usagi just gaped, this mountain of a man who had just saved both their lives thought he couldn't help?

"I… Well I really wasn't a heavy hitter back in Crystal Tokyo." He was actually blushing as he admitted the words. "I'm not the Senshi of Jupiter. I didn't inherit my mother's power. Few men do. I didn't think you needed a weakling like me weighing you down."

"You are too modest." Luna put in, the first time she had spoken since Juno's story began. "Your master always thought very highly of you, so did the Queen, so did your mother."

"Yeah, well…" Juno said, shuffling in his seat uncomfortably. "I'll admit I was ok at martial arts. And, while the beastmen are very strong against physical attacks, hit them with even the smallest ki or magic and they crumble. Still, my martial arts isn't what it used to be, and, back in Crystal Tokyo, all the Senshi were just as good as me or even better. Martial arts is done through the unification of mind and body. Not all of it carried over the way it should have. I've been having to retrain myself, although I do still have most of my ki."

Ki, why did that make Usagi think of a small wrinkled old woman by the name of Shampoo?

"What about those monsters you summoned?" Usagi asked. "They seemed powerful enough."

"Oh, those." Juno said in an offhand manner. "They're called spirit beasts and consume a lot of spirit energy. In Crystal Tokyo they were kind of like pets to those who had the energy and could do an assortment of odd tasks. I'm probably the only one other than my master who ever used them in combat. But they wouldn't answer my call until Luna showed up at my door. It was only today that I figured out how to summon my Jupiter Knight getup and gained access to my spirit beasts."

"If you had been with us at the factory," Shion said quietly, not willing to forgive the man, "this would never have happened." Usagi couldn't tell if she was talking about Sailor Venus, her eye, the Diet Building, or even if she meant all three.

Juno's eyes went cold, then hot, then cold again as he slumped low into a chair. Usagi could see the man wanted to say something, but couldn't think of anything.

"What do you know about Sailor Venus?" Usagi asked, wanting to change the subject. "Why was she working for Zero? She helped us before and Tuxedo Kamen was with them as well."

"I don't know." Juno said slowly, his shoulders still bent, his eyes not leaving the floor. "I have heard there are ways to force a person to do your bidding, but what they are or how to stop them, I can't say."

"But, she said I killed her brother…" Usagi's sentence trailed off, not wanting to consider that she might actually have killed the girl's brother in a past life.

Juno's head slowly rose and he looked Usagi straight in the eyes. His face was somber, the weight of untold centuries and the death of billions rested in his gaze.

A flash of memory came back to her. She was struggling to hold the barrier in her mother's place as names of the dead flew around her. People she had known all her long life had passed away and even more names were coming in. Someone started shouting the name Aino Min- but was cut off by the sound of crystal shattering. A man was bellowing in rage, his voice shaking the walls. A door had been locked. They were never supposed to be locked. A child was dead.

When Usagi came back to herself she found her face was damp.

"The door had been locked." Usagi said in a daze. "Who?"

"Nobody worth remembering." Juno said coldly. "A coward, now long dead. Have you remembered that night?"

"No," Usagi said, "not entirely. It was just for a moment."

"Crystal Tokyo was something spectacular." Juno said. "The entire human race under one banner, dedicated to peace, to justice, to love and beauty. We wielded unimaginable forces of nature and the Queen in particular was the kindest and greatest ruler the universe had ever known. But, we learned that night that there were some forces against which even we could do nothing."

"I don't know exactly what happened." Here Juno gave Luna another look. "From what I do know, there was a massive explosion. What triggered it, no one could say. All I know is that, whatever it was, it's still going on even after all these thousands of years. You know it as the Red Sun."

The Red Sun? Usagi thought. But hasn't that always been there.

"When that abomination came into existence over ninety percent of the population died." Ninety percent? Those kinds of numbers couldn't be right. "It wasn't all at once, mind you. Some of those deaths would have been preventable too, if the explosion hadn't started where it did. Five Senshi were on the planet. We can only assumed they all died instantly, otherwise we would not be here now and the Crystal Palace would still stand. Among them was a man, no, woman perhaps, that was said to be equal in power to the Queen."

Another flash of memory, this time of a woman with short black hair and purple eyes.

"Anyway," Juno said, bringing her back to the present. "The terraforming devices we had set up across the System began to fail on a large scale. A few of them managed to limp on. The Moon. Pluto. Mars. Venus wasn't one of them. The life support spells were failing and the woman you know as Sailor Venus took it upon herself to hold them together. She literally kept a world from breaking and her efforts allowed many to escape. When it came time for her to leave, she barely had enough energy to teleport herself and her brother back to Earth and the Queen's palace."

"But someone had locked the doors." Shion said, her hand covering her missing eye.

"Yes." Juno growled. "People were panicking. I found her lying half dead outside a palace door and rescued her. I broke through the door she couldn't, but I was too late to save her brother. Even though the doors hadn't been locked in thousands of years, some idiot had done so in fear for his life. He would have lived longer if he hadn't."

Usagi shivered at that last sentence and didn't want to consider just what Juno's big hands were capable of.

"You think it was wrong of me to kill him?" Juno shouted at his Princess, noticing the look on her face. "A child barely more than an infant died because of his selfishness! And there were other doors that he had locked! You would not think it wrong if you had seen the piles of corpses, so desperate to get inside that they had torn their hands to shreds!"

Usagi quailed under the force of his words. She still couldn't help but feel sympathy for a man who could be so frightened as to abandon all reason.

"Well," Juno said, regaining his calm. "It's in the past now, and he would have died soon after in any case."

"Wait," Shion said, "you said you weren't that powerful, so how did you…"

Another look of pain crossed Juno's expressive face.

"I," he said, "I wasn't as tired as her when I reached the palace. I had just saved myself and my little sister."

"So even then," Shion said in a quiet but carrying voice, "you were content to let others die while you sat on the sidelines."

"It, it wasn't like that!" Juno said, real pain in his voice. "My sister and I, we… We were in the asteroid belt. She still didn't have a good grasp on her powers. I was there to watch over her while our mother was busy with politics. And Jupiter… When the Red Sun appeared Jupiter… It burst into flames. It wasn't like it is now. Jupiter had been the biggest planet in the Solar System. It was called a gas giant. When it was hit with all that heat and debris, the atmosphere combusted and the whole planet just burned. I don't think my mother even knew what had happened before she…"

The man had his face buried in his hands. Usagi went to him and put her arm around his shoulders.

"We knew something was wrong." Juno said, his big voice having gone so quiet she had to strain to hear him. "A second sun. The sky red. I tried contacting Jupiter but got only static. Soon, we figured out that all the comm. channels were down. I would have gone back to Jupiter immediately, but I couldn't just go there on my own. I… I never had the magic required to teleport. I would have had to take my sister with me in order to use her power and I couldn't put her in danger. So I waited until the capitol finally managed to get a message out. The universe was in shambles and I thought, since the palace still held, there was no safer place I could take my sister. In the end, even the palace was destroyed…"

* * *

Juno had escorted the two girls back to their homes. The worst by far had been seeing the Bluerivers' reaction. He had liked the girl and found it hard to believe that his action, or rather inaction, had somehow brought about the mess that had become of her right eye. The girl could close it now, her eyelids having re-grown. But, without an eyeball behind them, it was a hallow look.

She hated him, of course. They hadn't really moved in the same circles in Crystal Toky. She had been a scientist, he a martial artist. So there was no lingering sense of attachment or anything. But, after the Tolar Tower, he had started to think of her more fondly.

The sight of her parents rushing out of their small shop to hug their daughter almost broke his heart. Then they had noticed her eye and he would have cut off his right arm if it meant she could have it back.

Sailor Moon, or was it Usagi? A name chosen by fate if ever he heard one. She had gone inside with the Bluerivers, to help explain and further support her friend. The same kind and beautiful princess she had ever been.

Juno, on the other hand, waited outside in the shadows. There was no place for him among such a tearful family reunion.

A long time after, he was walking Usagi up to her own door. It was getting late into the night, but she had apparently called ahead of herself. It was still a truly heartfelt reunion as his Princess walked in through her door.

Again, Juno stayed outside.

When the lights finally dimmed, he turned and walked away. He hadn't gone five steps when he noticed a pair of big cat eyes watching him. He stopped and looked at the cat. Throughout the night it had been obvious that she knew more than she was letting on. But, then, didn't all cats? He once had thought his master's phobia was crazy, but now…

"We need to talk, Juno." The cat said, slinking closer to him. She sat down and stared up at him.

Juno just grunted. Cats, especially secretive and scheming cats, didn't deserve a proper answer.

"It's about Sailor Jupiter."

Damn all cats.

"I had hoped," Juno said, careful to keep his voice down, "that she could stay out of this."

"You know she can't." Luna said, a little too patiently for his liking. "We will need her power before all this is over." He had known this was coming, and didn't want to hear it.

"She was just a child." He tried to keep desperation from his voice. "She's older now than she was then!"

"Be that as it may be," the cat said, swishing its tail with impatience, "she is the Senshi of Jupiter. Before long, the power will call out to her and she will not be able to resist."

Juno felt like breaking something. Maybe a porcelain black cat.

"Just give her a bit more time." Juno pleaded. "Give her time to enjoy her life, to be a girl before a warrior."

The cat looked at him, her big eyes easily reading his heart.

"I will wait." Luna said. "But I have already felt the stirrings of her power. It will not be long before she awakens on her own."

Juno didn't like the answer, but knew that was the way it had to be.

"Thank you, Luna."

The cat bobbed its head and disappeared into the night.

Juno took one last look at his Princess' residence before he too disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

[1] Rei-Syou: Lightning Snake (3x3 Eyes Chapter 113, Page 10-11) [I don't pull these things out of nowhere]

[2] Fuu-Yao-Chi-Chuu: Monster Trap Big Spider (3x3 Eyes Chapter 402, Page 7-8) [I would like to note that attack names and their translations are taken from the sources available to me and I'm not certain they will always be accurate. Their effects, however, are without question accurate and the names shall be used as they first appear]

[3] Shou-Rin: Running Scale (3x3 Eyes Chapter 91, Page 3-4) [Often I have found that the spirit beast names in 3x3 eyes have multiple phonetic translations, though usually only one literal translation. I by no means use the correct ones but the ones I think sound best. This particular beast was also called Tso-Ulin]

* * *

Ouch! Ow, oww! Stop throwing things at me! I got it out alright! So what if it's a year late! Wait, no one's throwing anything? What? You all got tired of waiting and left! *Sobs*

Ah well, I'm not actually writing this for you people anyway. You just have the dubious pleasure of reading it. I like this chapter, particularly the first part which I've had written for a year. That means whenever I was feeling guilty and procrastinating I would read and edit it. As such, it is about as good as I can make it. The rest however…

I guess that's what later revisions are for, right?


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